New Love
by Lauren Ballard
Summary: Edward and Bella have been in love for years now, they've struggled but made it. But when Emmett meets Bella for the first time, she falls for him in an instant. What troubles will they go through, and what will happen to Edward and Rosalie? First FanFic
1. Introduction

**(AN: Really, really short first chapter! Hope you like it!)**

Bella's POV

Bella stopped her noisy truck outside the Cullen's house. It didn't fit in at all. All the other vehicles were shiny and modern. And quiet, Bella presumed.

As she got out of the car, Edward was there to meet her. It was sunny, but not much light made it through the tall trees.

He opened her door and held it for her.

"Hello, Bella." He murmured, already at her side. He held her hand as they walked up the stairs to the Cullen's house. "Did you sleep well?"

"Yeah." She mumbled, looking down. "You didn't come last night." Edward stopped at the top step; face hardening in a strange sadness.

"I'm sorry Bella…I couldn't…I – I needed to hunt." He sighed, and then led Bella through the doors and into their house. Inside, Carlisle and Esme were there to greet them.

"Bella," Carlisle nodded. "Thank you for coming. I would like you to meet two other members of our family." Esme nodded and showed them through into the living room, where two unfamiliar people stood. Alice and Jasper were talking excitedly with them. The second person had their back to her, and they were admiring something on a small table. Edward turned and grinned at Bella, holding her hand.

"Bella," Alice smiled and skipped up to her. "You remember when we told you that Emmett and Rosalie had gone to Africa for the past...five years?"

Bella barely remembered their names, but she had never met them. She nodded though, just to get on with it. The female stranger walked forward.

"Hello," she said, smiling warmly. "I'm Rosalie. I've heard a lot about you." She was the most beautiful person Bella had ever seen. She had long, blond hair that fell in bouncy curls down to her waist, and a perfect, flawless face. Her eyes were mysterious and a bright gold. She wore a long red dress with a single thin strap. She smiled and stepped back.

"Anyway, over here is -" Alice quickly stopped and all the vampires in the room turned around to face the far glass wall. In a flash, people were moving. Bella found herself being lifted by Edward and brought into the kitchen, where he set her down on a stool by the counter. She stood up to try and take a look at the door, but Edward blocked her view.

"What's going on?" she demanded. Edward wasn't looking in her direction; instead, his gaze was locked on the only doorway. "Edward? Edward!" Bella grabbed him and turned him around.

"It's nothing, Bella. Just some…passers by." He whispered. Bella knew what he meant.

"If it's nothing then you'd let me-" she stopped, realising what he meant.

_Vampires._The kind that killed humans every day. Not the kind vampires that the Cullens were.

Edward silently carried Bella to the farthest corner in the kitchen, where she sat on a short chair and waited. Edward stood in front of her, eyes not leaving the door.

_Oh no._ He seemed worried...too protective. There were footsteps in the other room.

"Well, hello there." Said a voice. It was a man. "We smelled other vampires in this area…and it seems we've found them."

"Indeed you have. But before we get into any conversations, we would like to ask you to refrain from hunting in this area." Jasper spoke. He sounded calm, but with authority in his voice.

"We will be no trouble. Besides, we ate before we found this town. I can see that this area belongs to you...we will leave if that is what you wish." a different voice, with an unplaceable accent. It was male, too.

"We are very sorry that your visit could not be more pleasant. But please _do _leave." Jasper sounded annoyed. A few quiet voices, then footsteps. Sighs.

"It's okay, they're gone now." Edward turned to Bella, who got off the chair and walked to the kitchen door, wanting to know what was happening.

As she opened it, she walked right into someone. Bella jumped back and looked up to see the other family member of which she did not know. Emmett. That was his name. He had thin, dark blonde hair and a very muscular build. He looked down at her with a blank face, and at that moment, when they met each other's eyes, they fell in love. Some connection clicked.

Bella stopped breathing, just staring. For Emmett it was the same. Breathless shock. It was love at first sight, only much, _much _stronger. Edward was behind Bella, watching them. He couldn't believe what he was reading from Emmett's mind.

"_Bella_!" he cried. Bella turned to look at his pained face, but she didn't feel anything. No sympathy, no urge to comfort him. She looked back to Emmett, then back to Edward. There was nothing between them anymore.

_No love._


	2. Goodbyes

Bella's POV

A whole month had passed since Emmett and Bella had met. After this time with the Cullens they, madly in love, decided to leave the Cullens, because they couldn't bear what they had done to Rosalie and Edward. Rosalie was always silent, never talking to anyone but Esme. But whenever she passed Bella her anger was painfully obvious. And of course Edward, who spent his days alone. He had already moved out, and the Cullens hadn't heard from him.

A lot can happen in one month.

"I don't know, Emmett." Bella murmured, leaning against him. "We can't just leave Carlisle like this. Think about Esme and Alice! They'll be heart-broken. Especially with Edward leaving and Rosalie…" she didn't need to go on.

"Well we can't stay here! I know Rosalie, and if she wants something, she will use all of her power to get it. And she wants you _dead! _We have to leave. Maybe just for a while, enough for her to…calm down a bit. Forget about this." Emmett kissed her on the forehead.

"How long will that take?" Bella demanded, squeezing his hand.

"I'm not sure," Emmett whispered. "But don't worry. We'll come back one day." They stood; ready to tell the Cullens their plans.

Edward's POV

Edward sat in his apartment, waiting. He threw another red dart at a picture of Emmett on the wall. The face was barely recognisable, what with all the holes in it.

The doorbell rang. Edward stood and kicked aside old blankets and cardboard boxes. The place that he stayed was a small apartment, filled with junk. He got to the door and opened it, to see a small but cheery-looking girl standing there. She was about sixteen, and she wore a big T-shirt with the _Hal's Pizza Delivery _Logo on it. She held a large pizza box and a small black bag.

"Hello, you ordered pizza?"

"I believe I did." Edward's voice lowered into something irresistible. "Why don't you come inside? Just for a little while. You can set that pizza down…" He had already gotten her following him inside. He kicked the door closed and ripped the pizza out of her hands. He threw it on the ground behind him, and then pounced at the girl. Before she could scream, she was having the life sucked out of her by a depressed vampire.

Bella's POV

Esme was crying. Alice was crying. The boys were comforting them.

"Are you two sure about this?" Carlisle asked; no emotion in his voice.

"I'm completely sure about Emmett." Bella said confidently.

"And I'm sure that we need to leave." Emmett smiled and held Bella close.

"I…I guess I can say nothing to stop you." Carlisle sighed and hugged the couple. Next was Esme, still crying. After that came Alice and Jasper. Alice hugged Bella whilst Jasper was talking to Emmett in a hushed tone.

"Bella, are you completely sure about this? You just met two weeks ago!" Alice whispered, clinging on to her.

"I'm sure. And…I love him, Alice. We're soul mates. Destined for each other. Everyone said their goodbyes, and soon Rosalie came down. She never took her eyes of Bella. It was a fierce glare that Bella would always remember. She didn't speak a word, but her point was clear enough. They left out the front door, leaving behind their previous life.

They got in Emmett's new car. It was a shiny black vehicle with four seats. Two in the front, two in the back. Emmett started the car, it gave a quiet purr and began to move smoothly. They pulled out of the Cullens' driveway. They only had one more thing to do before leaving, and that was to visit Charlie. Bella reached over and took Emmett's hand, then leaned against his cold body and tried to imaging their future.

Rosalie's POV

Everyday I remember our days together.

_Emmett._

Emmett promised me he would always love me, and never leave my side. But as soon as we get back from Africa he falls in love with the nearest girl, who so happens to be _Edward's _mate. This was tearing our family apart! Bella is just a human, but Edward and Emmett seem to care so much about her. Ah! I was becoming insane. My true love – or at least I thought he was – had left me for vermin. A human. And poor Edward - they torture him and myself by loving each other!

I would stop this, I would make everything better again. By killing Bella.

I couldn't do it on my own though – no one would ever forgive me. So I decided to find some people to help. I jumped up from the couch, making Esme jump. I raced to the front door and threw it open, then ran to find the vampires.

Victoria's POV

Rosalie. That was her name. The girl who had called on me. I saw her before, when we visited her home. She found me hunting the second time though, and I very nearly ripped off her pretty little head. But she offered me a challenge. Hunt down and kill a human. But it wouldn't be easy, the human would have another vampire with her. Perfect. Some fun. I decided to call Laurent, for James was busy tracking some make-believe monster. A werewolf, he called it.

"Victoria." Laurent spoke through the phone.

"Hello, Laurent. It's nice to hear you. Now listen, I have been given a challenge…"

Emmet's POV

After a few hours of driving, they made it to the closest airport. I hadn't yet told Bella where we were going, and I planned to keep it a surprise. We entered the big, bustling airport and went through the normal stages.

Finally, after around two hours, we were in line to board our flight. As we gave the flight attendant our boarding pass, I noticed two people following us. They were vampires. I was alarmed. They snuck past the flight attendant and disappeared.

"Bella, wait." I whispered, stopping her from boarding. A family behind us "Two vampires just got on that plane. It's not safe." And reluctantly, Bella nodded. I swung her on to my back and we ran through the airfield and back around the whole airport, passing very close to many airplanes. The whole time Bella was breathing unevenly and squeezing her eyes closed. When Emmett turned around, he could see a few people running off of the plane they had just escaped from. There was screaming.

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**Good so far?**

**Please review! I really need opinions and stuff if I want to improve. Any ideas for the next chapter?**

**Lauren xx**


	3. Visitors

This chapter is dedicated to TAMASINE!

**Tammy, can't believe you're moving! I'll miss you so much! Also, to the people that gave me my first reviews!**

**ox Lolly xo, IggyAteMySandwichAgain, amber and angelheartsonfire (tammy!) **

**ENJOY!**

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**Chapter Three**

**Bella's POV**

Bella paced the hotel room, waiting for Emmett to return. She sat and sighed. There was a magazine on her bedside table. She grabbed it and went through it, finding nothing to interest her. There was nothing to _do _here!

Emmett and Bella, after they had departed from the airport (due to...dangerous circumstances) had found a nearby hotel and were staying there for two nights, until they could get another plane to wherever they were going. Bella had never actually _wanted _to leave Forks – she had too many friends there. And Charlie! Speaking of Charlie, Bella had promised to call him regularly, because she had only told him that she and Emmett were moving out. She jumped off her bed and pulled her suitcase out from under it. She searched the front pockets but her phone wasn't there. Bella frowned and walked into the main living room, and then checked her back-pack. It wasn't in there. Bella became strangely paranoid, and started searching the entire room. Finally, she found a note on the bedside table that she hadn't noticed before.

_Bella,_

_I know you will be angry but I have taken your phone._

_I can't let you call Charlie; he can't know where you are._

_We'll talk about it when I get back, but for now please don't leave the room._

_Love from, Emmett_

Bella sighed and dropped the note, watching as it drifted slowly to the ground. She picked up the phone on the table, and then dropped it again. She didn't know Charlie's number, but it was saved on her phone. The phone that Emmett had taken.

Perfect, she thought sarcastically.

Bella walked back into the main room and collapsed on to the sofa, grabbing the TV remote as she fell down. She pressed the ON button and flipped to a random channel. The news. Fantastic. She got to the report mid-way.

"...Airport there was a _massacre_on one of the planes, probably from some sort of gang, no one knows how they got in, but they do know that before the plane even got on the runway, around fifty people were killed. After only a few minutes the plane exploded, but lucky for them most passengers had not yet boarded. We have the story here from a witness, Carl Lysberg. Now Carl, can you tell us what happened?" the news reporter stopped and the screen changed to a sad-looking man. He was bald and had a tattoo on his left shoulder.

"It was just horrible," he said. "I was with my wife Janice and we heard some screamin', then we see people trying to get back into the airport, we saw some blood...it was _not _pretty. Then the flight attendants told us to move away, and so everyone around had to leave that area. So we all moved back, and the plane, after sittin' there for so long, just...exploded. It looked like some dynamite, and we were sure lucky it didn't spread to the terminal. We all would've been dust."

Bella changed the channel; she didn't want to hear it. But the next channel was the news too, and the same story was on. She frowned and turned it off.

Bella stood up and walked back into her bedroom, where she searched her bag for her clothes. She found a dull green tank top and blue jeans, which she brought with her to the bathroom. After a long, relaxing shower she got changed and ran back to her suitcase. She found her socks at the top and slid them onto her feet before running to the front door.

She was hungry! She knew they had a restaurant here somewhere. Bella took her wallet out from her bag on a peg and slid her sneakers on. Where had Emmett gone? She wondered. After a minute, it came to her – he was hunting.

He hadn't in a long time, but Bella wished he hadn't gone _now. _She felt an odd sense of unease creep over her, and she shivered. She opened the door, nearly forgetting her room key. Bella snorted at her forgetfulness and ran back inside, leaving the door open. She found the key-card on the table, where she slipped it into her jeans pocket and exited. She waited impatiently for the elevator, tapping her foot and grimacing.

She was _very_ hungry. After five minutes she gave up and turned towards the stairs. Bella pushed open the heavy door and started walking down quickly. For anyone else, the worst thing that could happen would be to trip. For Bella, she was so clumsy that if she tripped it would probably be a death fall. But she continued carefully, not hearing any sounds of the elevator coming.

As she got to the last flight of stairs Bella felt confident, since she had not fallen yet. But after her second step her shoe-lace ironically came undone and she stepped on it. Her foot didn't move when the rest of her body leaned forward and she fell face-first. She slammed into the hard grey stairs and painfully slid down. She felt a huge ache on her knee and when she tried to get up she tumbled down the last few steps.

Bella lay there on the ground, groaning and tossing. Finally, she grabbed the railing nearest to her and pulled herself up to examine the damage. Her right knee had a rip in the jeans, and there was an awful cut on the skin below. Blood was dripping around in, staining her jeans. Bella swore mentally and noticed that her knee-cap was at a slightly weird angle. Hardly noticeable. But as soon as she put weight on it she nearly tumbled over. Again. She wiped her wet eyes and decided she wouldn't go out without Emmett again.

She found a little closet under the stairs and to her luck it was unlocked. She rummaged through it until she found a crutch. Good luck? It looked impossible. It had to be defective in some way. But Bella managed to make it out of the stairs and into the lobby, where there was no one around. The elevator came almost instantaneously, letting Bella give out a sigh of relief as she limped into it.

She leaned against the wall and reached out to press her floor number. Number five out of seven. Bella banged the side of the elevator as it stopped at floor number three. The doors opened and someone walked in.

It was a tall, pale woman. She had heaps of curly orange hair that looked like a raging fire, and she wore a T-shirt that said "PEACE" with a brown leather jacket on top of it. Her jeans were black and ripped in a lot of places, showing more white skin. She was incredibly beautiful, but slightly familiar. She smiled with her mouth closed at Bella and leaned against the opposite wall to her. She looked down and noticed Bella's cut.

"Oh dear." Her voice was like wind chimes, it was magical. "What's happened with you?" she didn't stop smiling, which made Bella shiver.

"What..." she looked down. "Oh, that. I, uh, fell down some stairs. I'm alright though."

"Well it's good that I've already had lunch." She stopped smiling and looked at Bella in an odd way, and Bella looked back. She finally noticed her eyes. It made her jump and gasp. They were completely red, with a small pupil in the middle.

"Uh...nice contacts..." she murmured. The woman nodded, still staring at Bella. No, Bella thought. My _neck. She's staring at my neck! _Bella realised what she was.

"You're a vampire." She whispered, horrified. The woman didn't look surprised.

"Well done. I thought you would've been quicker," she laughed. "Now, I'm going to let you go, on the condition that you don't tell your boyfriend that you ever saw me. If you do, just know, I have a friend and I really don't think he could take both of us." She walked out of the elevator on the fourth floor, leaving Bella speechless. There was something about her...she swore she had seen her before. The elevator made a _ding _noise and Bella stumbled out, and then hobbled down the hall and into her room.

Edward's POV

Rosalie sat at the far end of Edward's apartment, watching him.

_Edward. _She thought. Edward listened. _I just wanted to tell you before-hand, Bella is going to die. _

His head snapped up and he ran to Rosalie, then grabbed her and brought her close to him.

"_What_?" he snarled. Rosalie looked calm.

"She took Emmett from me! So I sent someone to kill her. And there's nothing you can do about it." She snapped, breaking his hold on her. They started a fight, but it was more like a dance. Edward picked her moves from her head and he was faster anyway. Rosalie let herself be backed up towards, the window, and at the last moment she dived out of it, glass shooting around her. She dived through the air, and then crashed in an alley. She fell on her back; put jumped back on her feet and glared at Edward seven stories higher.

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**Thanks for reading! Please review! Any suggestions on what should happen next chapter?**

**Lauren xx**


	4. Warnings

**Slightly shorter chapter, hope you enjoy!**

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**Chapter Four**

Emmett's POV

Emmett was in the middle of a hunt when the other vampire came. It was stupid, interrupting him when he was in such a state. He was chasing a bear, a tall, black creature, when he heard someone come up behind him. Emmett snarled furiously and spun around. A vampire stood there, holding his hands up in surrender. He had dark skin and black dread-locks that hung loosely around his face. His chest was bare except from an unbuttoned, black shirt. On his legs were torn black trousers, and black gloves on his hands. His eyes were bright red. At least _he'd _been able to hunt. Emmett stood ready for a fight.

"Please, I mean you no harm." He said in a strange accent. "My name is Laurent; I am a friend of those who visited your home not too long ago." He slowly lowered his hands.

"What do you want?" Emmett growled. Laurent laughed quietly.

"I only want to talk, and I'm sorry that I interrupted you." He apologised. Emmett was still tense. There was something not right about him.

"I have heard that your mate is a _human. _I even heard that you abandoned a vampire for her. Now, I find this injustice, and I have been given a little fun task from my good friend Victoria. She is asking simply that I help her. She has a target that she must kill, and that is your mate. But do not worry, I sent her far, misleading her. I only came to warn you." He explained, spreading his hands out.

"_Kill Bella_?" he yelled. "You're the guy from the airport, you _knew _we were getting on that plane and you would've killed her anyway! I don't believe or trust you." He was walking closer to Laurent now, who didn't move at all.

"You are quite smart, young one. You know not to trust me." As he was talking, he lunged for Emmett and landed on top of him, trying to get his hands around the younger vampire's neck. Emmett tried to knock him off, but his grip was too tight. So he reached back and grabbed Laurent, and then swung him viciously off his back and on the ground. He was back up in an instant, and they started a dangerous fight. They were pretty evenly matched, Laurent was more experienced and faster but Emmett was stronger, giving him a good advantage. He didn't attack, but waited for Laurent to come to him, and he would block and counter attack all of his moves. Finally, Laurent gave up and ran away, leaving Emmett in the forest. He growled and started following him, but when a few deer passed he couldn't help himself, he drained all of them and was still thirsty. He tried to track Laurent but failed, and ended up continuing his hunt. It was still sunny outside, but the light barely came through the trees, so it felt like night. Emmett could hear all of the animals around him, the birds hiding somewhere, the smaller animals creeping around. Finally, once it was dark enough, he shot up and sprinted at his top speed to the highway, where he followed it to the hotel. He could smell Laurent around here. As he came into human view he slowed to a human-paced run, which was incredibly slow and boring for him. He took the stairs ten at a time, boosting himself up. After one minute he reached the fifth floor and sprinted down the hall. He checked his pockets for the room key but it wasn't there. He banged on the door and yelled for Bella.

Bella's POV

Bella was about to drink some of her soda when there was an ear-splitting bang on the door. Someone yelled her name. He jumped so high that her soda can dropped on her lap and spilled all over her. She groaned and muttered a curse before taking the can off of her lap and rushing to the door, she opened it to Emmett, who looked incredibly furious. His expression dropped as soon as he saw her. He sighed in relief and hugged her so hard that she couldn't breathe.

"Emmett? What's going on? What's wrong?" she asked, pushing away to look at him.

"I...it's nothing." He marched in, closing the door behind him. Bella stood there, mouth hanging open. She walked into the bedroom and changed into a different shirt. She got out another soda from the small mini-fridge and slowly opened it. She walked out into the living room and sat next to Emmett on the sofa. She placed her soda gently on the coffee table and turned to look at him. He was already staring at her with amazing, golden eyes. Bella stopped breathing for a second.

"Emmett," she breathed out heavily. "_What _is going on? And _don't tell me it's nothing_!" he sighed and looked away, but Bella put both hands on the sides of his head and turned it towards her.

"I...when I was..._hunting_...I ran into someone. A vampire. He...he said that his friend was trying to kill you. He was too, I think. They were the ones from the airplane, Bella." He looked away, face full of pain. Bella suddenly remembered the woman from the elevator, and realised she was the vampire from the airport. And if she was the vampire from the airport, then she was the vampire trying to kill Bella.

And to think that she had been so _close _to the vampire...she shuddered as she remembered what the woman had said.

"What can we do?" she whispered. Emmett was silent for a minute, but he stood and walked slowly into the bedroom, then emerged only a second later with a cell phone. He already had it pressed to his ear. After around ten seconds he was talking. Bella heard "flight" and "tomorrow" mentioned. She bit her lip and started drinking from her soda can. Her cell phone was thrown on to the table, which made her jump and nearly spill her soda. _Again. _She put it on the table and wiped off a few drips on her arm, before lifting the phone and checking that it wasn't damaged. Luckily, it wasn't. It was just the way Bella had seen it last time. Small, silver, and scarred with scratches. But she remembered where most of them came from. She touched the different marks, and thought about when it happened. The little scratches on the side – she had dropped it out of her truck's window once. Those made her miss her truck. The small dent in the back of it – Edward was messing with her phone and – she stopped. She tried to forget about him, but the image of his pained face kept coming back.

She covered her eyes and took deep breaths, but soon resorted into turning on the TV to watch cheesy cartoons. At least they got her mind off..._him. _After a few minutes of hushed talking, Emmett joined her on the couch. He got the remote out of Bella's hand and managed to change the channel before she could steal it back. They started wrestling and laughing. Well, not really laughing. Just Bella crawling on top of him to grab the remote from his hands. She ended up sitting breathless, laughing and leaning against Emmett's chest. He changed the channel to a football game, where Bella sighed and closed her eyes. She couldn't sleep with Emmett's constant yelling of team names. There was a little swearing involved. Why was everyone so worked up about this game? It's exactly that, a _game. _Just throwing a ball around. She sighed again and turned with her back to the game, and started to drift off...

She remembered herself being carried by strong, cool arms to the bedroom, and covers being pulled over her. The TV stayed on, she could hear it from bed. Finally, after a half awake state, she fell into a peaceful sleep.

Alice's POV

Alice looked outside the huge windows, watching the moon. It was nearly full. Just a few more nights. As she gazed into it, she seemed to see the moon in someone else's point of view. She could see a woman in her vision, she was beautiful and pale, the two first things to notice, besides her hair. Her hair was bright orange, and curly, like a raging fire. Her eyes were darker red, but still blazing. She wore a large no shirt, but a buttoned-up leather vest. On her legs were dark jeans with a few stylish rips. She didn't have shoes on. Alice didn't approve of what she was wearing, but held her fashion thoughts to herself. Back in her real self Jasper was sitting patiently, watching her. In the vision, the woman was looking down at something. That "something" was a dead body. She recognised the face and nearly screamed.

It was Bella.

Jasper shook her by the shoulders.

"_What, _Alice?" he demanded, seeing the horrified look on her face. She looked into his eyes, frozen.

"I saw...Bella was killed. By a vampire. She was the one that came here. Oh God, Jasper she's going to _kill Bella_!" she cried. Alice stood and rushed to her room where she found her cell phone in her purse. She already had it pressed to her ear.

"Come on, Emmett..._pick up_!"

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**Thanks for reading! Please review. Idea's for next chapter? Alice & Emmett's Conversation...how do you want it to turn out?**

**Lauren xx**


	5. Mistakes

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Big EH EM to someone who reviewed the last chapter. An unknown person, using the name "hhh". Can I remind you all that I am eleven and if I do ever mention stuff like that in the story it will leave off for you to imagine it YOURSELF.

Other than that... R&R!

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**Chapter Five**

Emmett's POV

Emmett didn't exactly _mean _to miss the call, but he was so engrossed in the game he was watching that he ignored it completely, even though her hear it clearly. He forgot that the high trill of it meant someone was calling. Suddenly the commercials came and Emmett groaned loudly, but stood. He noticed the phone still ringing. He rushed to it, only to find that it had gone straight to voicemail. He recognised the voice on the line.

"Emmett, call me as soon as you can, I -" it cut off, and Emmett heard Jasper in the background.

"Alice? Alice what are you seeing?" the voicemail stopped, before he could pick it up. So Alice had called, and seen something? Possibly important, but it wasn't like Alice didn't call often. Every few days, wanting to talk to Bella, she called. Emmett sighed and called Alice, putting it on speaker. Jasper picked up on the first ring.

"Emmett, she can't talk now." He said coldly. Jasper was still mad that Emmett had left Rosalie, and he was on the brink of hating him.

"I can wait." Emmett snapped back, starting to pace the room. After two minutes Alice was back on the phone.

"Emmett!" she squealed.

"Hi, Alice, what did you see?" he asked. His sister stopped. She was completely silent for a whole minute.

"I had two visions. They both involved…Bella." She sounded worried…Emmett automatically stiffened and he found his eyes focussed on the bedroom door and his ears on the beating of her fragile human heart.

"_What _Alice?" he yelled, forgetting that Bella was asleep. There was some movement in the other room, probably Bella rolling in her bed. She was on speaker phone, because Emmett was watching the game from the corner of his eye.

"Well, in the first she, uh..." Alice paused again. "She died. She was killed by a vampire. You weren't there. The vampire was the woman that visited us a while ago. Her name is Victoria. But there was someone with her. A man, his name was Laurence? Maybe Laurent? I'm not sure. But anyway, in the second you were both alive and in a city. Quite large, I can't narrow it down though." She explained. Emmett breathed in sharply, but was silent. His hand shook and he nearly dropped the phone.

"What can I do to stop the…first one?" he whispered into the phone.

"I don't know. You'll have to figure that one out on your own." She hung up without a goodbye. Emmett dropped the phone and heard a little gasp. He spun around but saw no one. He ran back into the bedroom to find Bella asleep.

Bella's POV

After listening to their whole conversation, Bella heard Alice finish and hang up, and Emmett come into her room. She squeezed her eyes shut and breathed heavily. She heard him enter and come to her side. He brushed a cold hand against her cheek, making her shiver and give away her consciousness. Emmett sighed.

"I guess you heard that all." He murmured. Bella opened her eyes.

"Yup." She whispered. Emmett kneeled by her side.

"It's okay. You'll be fine." He jumped on to the other side of the bed, not making a noise. Bella lay on his hard, cool chest. It reminded her so much of Edward. But she didn't remember loving Edward. Now that she thought of it, how could she ever love another, when she had Emmett? But she was sure she had asked this same question to herself when she was in love with Edward.

Bella turned to face him, and their faces were suddenly very close. Bella, naturally, forgot to breathe. Emmett slowly leaned closer and it turned into a passionate kiss. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled back, smiling. Bella was breathless, but also smiling hugely. She yawned and stretched her arms out.

"You should sleep now." Emmett whispered.

Bella groaned and shook her head.

"I don't want to…" she trailed off, eyes slowly fluttering closed.

"Goodnight. I love you, Rose." He sat up in horror after he had spoke. He had said _Rose_! Rosalie! How could he? Bella jumped up, all fatigue gone.

"_Emmett?_" she cried. Tears filled her eyes and spilled over, dripping onto her blanket.

"Bella, I -" he started. Bella screamed in frustration, jumping out of the bed. She was dizzy and wobbled on her feet. Emmett put a hand on her shoulder to steady her, but she ran for the bathroom. She locked the door behind her, on Emmett's sad face. She grabbed a towel and threw it over her as she slid into the empty bathtub. She ignored Emmett knocking and talking to her quietly. She buried her face in the towel and sobbed. Finally, the knocks stopped.

Bella cried herself to sleep.

Alice's POV

Today was a popular day for Alice's visions. Three in a day! Her third, of course, was nearly the worst. Next to Bella dying, of course.

_Vision_

_Bella is lying in a large blue bed with Emmett. She is about to fall asleep. Emmett whispers, "Goodnight. I love you, Rose." His eyes suddenly widen and he jumps up as he realises what he has just said. He begins to talk, but Bella is out of bed already, yelling._

"_Emmett?" she starts to cry. _

"_Bella I -" Emmett looks guilt-stricken. Bella screams and runs for the bathroom, locking the door. She cries the rest of the night._

_End of vision._

Alice jumped up.

"_Emmett_!" she grabbed her cell phone from the couch and dialled Emmett. He didn't pick up. Alice tried six other times, but only on the seventh did she leave a message.

"_Emmett. _I _saw _what you said! You fricking _ass hole_!" she screamed into the phone, and then hung up. She was never this mad, and never swore. Well, it wasn't technically swearing…her thoughts trailed off, and she suddenly remembered Bella.

"Alice?" Esme had walked in after her yelling.

"Yes?" Alice was still angry.

"Why is Emmett an '_ass hole'_?" She asked innocently. Alice burst into laughter.

Emmett's POV

Emmett couldn't believe himself. He sat on the bed, waiting. He had no idea what he was waiting for. Bella to come out, maybe?

_So what? _A small part of him whispered. _You can torment her some more? _Emmett ignored it, looking out of the window. He hadn't gotten over Rosalie.

It wasn't that he didn't love Bella more, but Rosalie was still with him longer, and it was hard to let go. But Emmett knew that Bella was his love now, and he had to make it up to her. He grabbed a piece of paper and scribbled down a note, slipped it under the bathroom door, and ran out of the room.

Bella's POV

Bella heard the hotel door open and close. Good. Emmett had left. She jumped out of the bathtub, nearly slipping on the towel, and ran out of the bathroom. Without hesitation she grabbed her suitcase and shoved her clothes in it, after grabbing a pair of clothes out to change into. She found her mobile phone on the desk, where it wasn't before…

Soon her whole bag was packed, she had showered and changed. She knew that Emmett would be back soon, so she didn't waste a second. The scab on her knee itched, but she resisted the urge to scratch it. She hauled her things out of the room and parked her suitcase right outside of the door, and then ran back inside to get her shoes on. She noticed a little note in the bathroom, and shoved in into her pocket. She found a piece of paper, and laughed mentally. How many times had notes been passed between them?

_Emmett. _

_I see you have not gotten over Rosalie. So go back to her. You love her, and so why are you pretending to love __**me. **__I cannot love you when you love another._

_I'm sorry._

_I will always love you,_

_From Bella._

Tears dropped and stained the paper as she wrote, and she pressed especially hard when she wrote Rosalie's name. Furiously she ripped off the bottom of it, knowing that he would know who wrote it. An apology was enough; she _would not _say that she loved him when he so obviously did not feel the same.

She crumpled the ripped off bit and threw it under the bed. Bella swiftly put on her shoes and ran to the door.

She caught a glimpse of herself in the bathroom mirror. She was wearing a dark brown blouse with blue jeans and an unzipped black jumper. Her hair was hazelnut brown and quite long. It fell until halfway down her back. Bella's eyes were dull brown and she had very pale skin with a few odd freckles. Shaking her head, she walked out of the room. _Why would Emmett be in love with me, anyway? _She asked herself. _As long as Rosalie existed, there was nothing that could compare to her beauty. _Bella was just an ordinary (besides from having a werewolf best friend and two vampire ex-boyfriends, and also being a magnet for danger.) human.

Kind of.

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**Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed! Okay, so OPINIONS PLEASE. Bella and Emmett make up straight away? Bella and Emmett make up at the END? Or do you guys have ideas? Four reviews for an update!**

**Lauren xx**


	6. Jacob

**Disappointed at the lack of reviews, hoping for a better outcome on this chapter. I get emails, you see, telling me WHO has reviewed or favourited this story. A few people _have _favourited it, so I'd like to please see them reviewing. :)**

**As always, I hope you enjoy!**

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**Chapter Six**

Bella's POV

Bella knew where she would go. Back to Forks. She would move in again with Charlie, make up with Alice and the rest of the Cullen's, and try to forget that she had ever fallen in love with a vampire.

It was the perfect plan. She knew that Edward had left Forks already, and so it would be a pain-free town. But, of course, there was a big problem. There always _had _to be a problem.

They drove here in _Emmett's _car. And only he had the keys. No taxi would bring her that far, and she simply didn't have enough money with her. Bella thought about this whilst sitting in the hotel lobby, sipping a soda. She had tears in her eyes that wouldn't seem to go away, no matter how much she blinked. She loved Emmett with all of her heart, but she had still had the strength to leave him. To make him happier.

Suddenly and idea came to her. Bella jumped in her seat and fished her phone out of her bag. She scrolled down her contact list until she saw the number she was looking for. She pressed the _call _button and pressed it to her red ear.

"Hello?" said a gruff voice.

"Hi. It's me, Bella. I need you to pick me up. I'm in Seattle. Near the Seattle International Airport. Please." She pleaded.

"Bella! Of course! But why do you want to come back?" he spat the last part.

"I – erm…can I tell you later?" Bella was quiet, miserably remembering the previous night.

"Sure, sure. I'll come now. But – wait. Will he be with you?" the voice asked through the phone.

"No, he won't. This means a lot. Thanks, Jacob."

Emmett ran up the stairs at ten times a human's pace, bursting open the hotel room's door. He ran to the bathroom…only to find it open. He looked inside, but Bella wasn't there.

"Bella?" he called, walking around the hotel room. He checked every room, and started to worry. His hands shook and without thinking he ripped the plane tickets in his hands. Her bags and shoes were gone. _She _was gone.

"Bella!" he yelled. He remembered Laurent and his friend, and snarled suddenly. The feral noise filled the room and echoed off of the walls. Emmett raced out the door and to the stairs, where he grabbed on to the rusty black rail and dropped down the gap in the spiral of stairs. He landed swiftly on two feet at the bottom, but already running. Running into the lobby, head snapping around. There were too many human scents here. He couldn't pick out Bella's, although he did smell her a few times.

Emmett burst out of the hotel and into the sun. He didn't care, he just kept running until he was finally safely under the shade of trees in the forest. Where had she gone? She couldn't have gone back to Forks, because, knowing Bella, she would definitely not want to be around Rosalie. But she had barely any money, let alone a car! Emmett looked at his hands and noticed that he had his fist clenched around a piece of paper. He hadn't noticed it before, but he remembered grabbing it from the hotel room. He let go and smoothed out the wrinkled paper.

_Emmett. _

_I see you have not gotten over Rosalie. So go back to her. You love her, and so why are you pretending to love __**me? **_

_I'm sorry._

_I_

It was scribbled down in Bella's messy handwriting.

The rest was ripped and ruined. Just like Emmett's heart. He cried out and ripped up the note into tiny pieces. She _couldn't _be going to Forks. Not if she wanted Emmett to go to Rosalie. But then, he thought, Bella would do exactly what Emmett expected her _not _to do. Confusing, but that was just Bella.

He ran towards the highway, making sure that he didn't get in the sun. He started running along the highway, towards Forks.

Jacob's POV

Jacob's smile was huge, nearly going off of the sides of his cheek. He couldn't believe it! Bella had _finally _gotten some sense and dropped the (second) bloodsucker! He knew she would get it one day. Jacob could protect her better. He was _sure. _And he wasn't a danger to her, he wouldn't _suck her blood. _And now, after such a long wait, Bella would be his. Jacob had never stopped loving her, he just _couldn't. _He knew that she loved him too. He was exited; so much so that when he arrived at the hotel Bella had instructed him to he ran in, looking around for the girl he loved. His breath ran out of him as he saw her there. She was the same as ever, short, brown haired, and smiling. But behind that smile was something else…a look of terrible misery. Jacob ran up to her and enveloped her in a huge bear hug.

"Bella!" he whispered. She froze.

"Jake…can't…breathe…" she muttered. Jacob pulled back and laughed.

"Hey, Jacob! How are you?" Bella smiled.

"I'm okay. But -" he paused. "But what about _you _Bella? What happened?" Jacob led her to his car, which hadn't changed a bit. Oh, except from the huge scratch on the hood. After a fight with Paul, the Rabbit was lucky to get out only with one scratch. Jacob opened the passenger seat for her and jogged around the other side to get in the driver's seat.

"Well?" he demanded. Bella sighed, smile leaving her.

"I guess we…broke up." She looked down. Jacob noticed a tear in her eye. He started the car and drove smoothly out onto the highway.

"_What?_ He broke up with you? I knew those bloodsuckers…"

"Jacob! No, no. It wasn't like that." She took a deep breath. "_I _broke up with _him._ Sort of. He – he said that he loved…_Rosalie._" And with admitting that she burst into tears, leaning against the dashboard. Jacob, still driving, murmured words of comfort to her.

"Its okay, Bella. I'm so, so sorry. We all knew he would do this someday." He stopped when he realised he had said _we. _As in his pack. They all knew that Bella had left with that leech and they only expected them to end it. It took a bit longer than Jacob had thought, but at least Bella was safe from him.

After a few minutes of crying, then ten in silence, Bella finally spoke.

"Thank you, Jacob." She murmured.

"That's alright, Forks isn't that far." He replied.

"No, that's not what I meant. I chose him over you, _both _vampires…yet you're still here for me." She smiled and took Jacob's hand.

"I will _always _be here. No matter what." He held her hand tightly, but suddenly there was a huge _thud _as if someone had just landed on top of the car…

"Crap…" he muttered, leaning to look in his mirror. "Must have been some branch…" but his eyes widened in horror when he adjusted his mirror. He pulled the car to a stop.

"Bella, _get out_!" he yelled, getting out his side. Bella complied, fear dominating her face. Jacob ran around to her side and started to shake. In front of them stood a vampire. The same vampire from the elevator a few days ago. Bella gasped and stepped back, bumping into the car. They were at a truck stop, with _no one around._

It was broad daylight, and the vampire was…sparkling. Her breathing was uneven, mostly gasps. As the vampire pounced towards them, Jacob changed into a wolf. Bella squeezed her eyes shut and held on to the car, not wanting to see this fight. There were snarls and growls, a few snaps and screams of pain.

Bella opened her eyes to see the woman slowly approaching, dodging Jacob's bites. There was something about her arm…she looked closer and nearly fainted. She didn't _have _an arm. A jagged line was drawn on her elbow where it used to be. Jacob, now a russet wolf, was lunging at the vampire he caught her off guard, and got his deadly jaws around her neck. Bella gasped as there was a snap. The woman's face turned into a mask of complete horror and disbelief. She let out a final ear-splitting screech and her head…_fell off. _It bounced once on the ground, a sea of red curls surrounding it. Jacob snarled and raced off into the woods.

Bella stood, staring at the head on the ground. Suddenly there was movement from the ground. The vampire's headless body was rolling around, dragging itself with one arm. She gasped and screamed, backing away. The body managed to grab its arm and reattach itself. Bella knew that if she waited too long the head would be back on the body and she would be killed. Jacob wasn't here to protect her. But she couldn't move. She was frozen with horror.

_Come on! _A voice whispered inside of her. _You're a coward, and that'll kill you. You can't rely on anyone – not _anyone. _Not even Jacob. Your best friend has left you to your doom in the middle of no where with a vampire that will soon kill you. So _do _something. _Bella started to shake as she managed one unsteady step forward. Breathing in gasps unevenly she took another. And another. Finally she made it to the head, where to body had nearly found it.

Still shaking incredibly, she lifted her left foot, slowly and carefully drawing it close to the twitching head. She closed her eyes and _kicked _as hard as she could. She felt hair touch her bare skin where her jeans didn't quite cover her ankles. Yelping, she opened her eyes and saw the head speedily rolling down the road and on to the side, landing in some bushes. The bushes twitched for a moment, but stopped. The vampire's body was still moving. Rolling and crawling blindly. Bella remembered how to kill a vampire. _You have to rip them up, _she remembered. _And burn _all _of the pieces. _

But she had nothing to start a fire, and the body, except from a head and arm missing, was intact. At that moment, Jacob, in his shirtless human form, came running out of the trees holding a long stick. The end of the stick was on fire, and slowly spreading down. He waved it around unsteadily and threw it on to the body, where it caught fire easily. Bella gasped and slid down to her knees, sobbing. She threw her face in to her hands, bent over. She was surprised no cars had come along. Jacob was by her side quickly.

"Bella?" he crouched next to her, draping a long arm around her shoulders. "Are you alright?" Bella finally stopped crying, and nodded. She let him lift her up and carry her into the car, where he set her down in the backseat. She lay down across the three seats and slowly drifted to sleep. She was dimly aware of Jacob being gone for a minute, doing something outside. A bright light flashed behind the car, but went out quickly. It was orange…like fire. Soon Jacob got in the car and looked back at Bella.

"I'm so sorry about that, Bella." He murmured. "I should've guessed that you would attract _some _sort of danger…" he grinned and started the car. She didn't remember anything after to that. Just sleeping…

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**Thanks for reading! Please review.**

**Two reviews for an update! Come on...**

**Lauren xx**


	7. Coming Home

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I wasn't going to update, but I decided to anyway! :) Slightly longer, but not considered as long. This week has been horrible, a two-day headache and now a sore throat! I had my exams two weeks ago, I've now gotten all of my results and I'm NOT HAPPY. Read the chapter, and review. I have a plan for the ending (don't worry, that won't come soon!) and so now I just have to find stuff to fill the middle ;D

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Enjoy!

**Song for this Chapter - Uprising by Muse (doesn't fit all to well...but it'll do!)**

**Chapter Seven**

Emmett's POV

Emmett was panicking.

He had made it back to Forks already and had searched the town, not leaving a single rock unturned. Bella wasn't there. He was sitting on a huge boulder in the middle of the forest. He dug his pale hand into the rock and watched as it sank down easily. _Bella, Bella, Bella. _Emmett could only think of _her. _He couldn't think of _where she had gone. _

Bella's POV

Bella woke up slowly, her eyelids fluttering open. She was jostled around quite a bit. As she tried to sit up she realised how much her head hurt. Groaning quietly, she threw her arms out behind her to keep herself up. Bella looked around herself. She was in a _tiny _room, with two seats in the front and…_a steering wheel? _Her brain took a minute to be fully awake, and she remembered that she was in the back of Jacob's car. It was moving, and Jacob himself was driving. He caught Bella's eye in the mirror.

"Hey, Bella! Glad you're awake." He whistled softly to himself. "Not long to go now." She crawled into a sitting position and buckled her seatbelt instinctively. A flood of memories rushed into her.

"_Bella get out!" _

She remembered getting out…and the vampire. _Oh God. Jacob killed that vampire…he could've been killed! _She thought, frozen. Horror overwhelmed her, thinking about what would have happened if she would have been alone. She was deep in terrifying thoughts when her best friend spoke quietly.

"Bells…" he started. "That bl- vampire, did you, um, _know _her? Because in my collection of 'em, they don't exactly fight that hard for their food." Bella took a sharp intake of breath, and didn't speak for a whole minute that seemed to go on forever.

"Yes." She said finally. "She came to me a few days ago. She said that she would let me go 'this time'. I guess that means she was coming back." Jacob sighed and pounded the dashboard.

"You're just a magnet for trouble." He muttered, loud enough for Bella to hear. As she peered out of the window she gazed through the fog to see a sign coming up. It was familiar…

_Welcome to Forks, _it read.

Sam Uley's POV

Growling and muttering to himself, Sam impatiently paced the large room. Jacob Black, the _stupid _boy, had gone out to get Bella back. But Bella had made her choice, and that was to stay with the enemy. The _vampires. _He tried to talk Jacob out of it, but that boy was so madly in love…

He was going to get killed. _Why _on earth would Bella want to leave her bloodsucker (no. 2)? Jacob would _somehow _start a fight, like always, and it would end terribly. And that would ignite a war between the species, and that would lead on to a long chain of events that ended with those freak Italian bloodsuckers. Sam shuddered and sat down on a stool by the kitchen counter, when the phone rang. He stood swiftly and grabbed it out of it's socket, pressing it to his ear.

"Yes?"

"Sam!" a young, impatient voice was squealing on the other line. _Seth. _"I was wolf and I saw Jake! He was way out on the highway, with Bella! But Sam, they were _attacked_! Only one vampire, but Sam, Sam, it was _so _cool, he got that woman _easily._" Sam listened to Seth go on for ten whole minutes about the fight, before he interrupted.

"That's enough, Seth. I get the picture. Was he hurt, at all?" Sam's cold voice broke Seth's excitement.

"Yeah, he's fine." The younger boy said quietly.

"Good. Now, was that vampire a Cullen?" he asked.

"Not that I recognised."

Sam hung up without a goodbye and sat back down. He leaned his head into his hands and decided that he needed to talk to Emily. So the currently-human werewolf waited for his love to return to him.

Bella's POV

As soon as the car stopped Bella slowly turned her head around to look out the window. She didn't recognise where they had parked, it looked like a normal Forks house. She sat in the car, staring at it. Now that she thought about it, it was slightly familiar. Bella's car door flew open and someone stood, towering over her. He smiled, and a memory resurfaced itself.

"_Come on, Bella." Bella looked up and _he _grinned her favourite crooked smile. Smiling herself, she stood up and got out of the shiny silver Volvo, and into the pale, cold arms of Edward._

Shaking her head, Bella jolted back into reality, where Jacob Black was waving a hand in front of her eyes.

"Bella? Come on, enough daydreaming." He rolled his eyes whilst taking her hand. Bella froze at the unfamiliarity of his _warm _hands. She was expecting cold, hard skin. Sighing, she let Jacob pull her out of the car, muttering. He led her to the door, where he dropped her hand and faced her.

"Are you ready?" he was still grinning like a mad fool. Ready?

"It's not like – oh." Bella remembered Charlie. "Of course!" she didn't smile, but knocked gently on the door. There were some loud thuds and footsteps from inside, but no one came to the door. Frowning, Jacob leaned forward and knocked harder. Inside someone grunted and yelled something vaguely sounding like "I'm coming".

Charlie's POV

Kicking mess out of his way, Charlie made his journey slowly to the door. There was a loud knock, which annoyed him.

"'Coming!" he yelled, whilst coughing. He saw the door and walked towards it, expecting some stupid mailman. Charlie paused with his hand on the knob.

"Hello? Anyone _home_?" Jacob Black dragged out the word _home, _annoying Charlie enough to pull the door open. It took a minute to process exactly what he was seeing. There stood Jacob, as expected, standing tall as ever and smiling down at him. To the boy's left there was a little gasp, barely audible. Charlie shifted his gaze to the short girl standing there. She had dark brown hair that was painfully familiar, and plain brown eyes that were filled with tears. The girl had deep purple bags under her eyes and wore plain, casual clothing. Jeans. White T-shirt. Sneakers. He looked at her eyes again, and recognised his own daughter.

"Dad?" the small voice fit the girl, who launched herself into Charlie's arms.

"Hey, Bells." Until Bella had pulled away, he didn't notice that he was crying.

"I'm going to kill that son of a…" Charlie cut off into quiet muttering. Himself, Bella and Jacob were sitting in the messy living room. His daughter had just gone over what had happened in the previous few days. Only a week? It had felt like a year. Emmett Cullen, the _second _Cullen to capture Bella's heart, had broken it as easily as gained it. Charlie had always known that that family was no good…or did he?

He had always thought Dr. Carlisle as a nice man. He saved lives. But his sons were monsters. How long before that Jasper kid fell in love with Bella? He tuned in his ears as Jacob continued the story.

"…me and I picked her up and drove her back here. Stupid bl – Cullen." He stopped abruptly, frowning at whatever he was about to say. Probably some new swear word that hadn't spread to the adults yet. Charlie didn't give a damn. Let them be rude – but only to each other.

"I'm glad you're safe Bella. So are you staying here or…" he left the question open, waving his hand in the air.

"I'm staying here." Bella confirmed, trying to smile. But Charlie could see the sadness in her eyes.

Emmett's POV

Yes. He could definitely smell Bella's scent around here. He was headed in the right direction. As he turned down the street where Charlie lived, her voice hit him like a brick wall (even though that wouldn't hurt…)

"…staying here." She said. Emmett could hear the misery. Bella was down the street, but with vampire senses he could hear her easily. He needed to set things right; convince Bella that he was over Rosalie. As soon as he was darting down the street he was stopped. Something fast and white hurled itself at Emmett, throwing him on the ground. Snarling, Emmett tried to see what was pinning him down. He gasped in air and his brother Edward's scent filled his nostrils.

"Edward? What're you doing?" Emmett demanded as he was dragged into the forest at the side of the road. He didn't fight. He was simply curious. When they reached the trees he spun around, shaking off Edward's hand.

"Keeping you away from her." He growled. Emmett looked at his brother in surprise.

_What? _He thought.

"You heard me. After what you've done…" he shook his head in disgust. "No way are you _ever _seeing her again."

_How would you know what I've done? Peeking into heads? _

"No. I _heard _it. With my own ears. I saw what you did to her. Why would you pretend to love her like that? It's killing her!" Edward was yelling now.

"You heard it? How?" Emmett spoke aloud.

"I was _there, _you piece of shit!" Wow. Edward _never _swore. But it wasn't exactly criminal…

"So what, you've been stalking her? You _creep! _Is that how sick you've gotten?" Emmett spat. His brother snarled furiously and launched himself at Emmett, who knocked him off and threw him down.

"I don't want to fight with you, Edward, so _piss off._" But Edward was already in a crouch, jumping at Emmett again. He cried out in pain as one of his arms was ripped off violently. Now he was mad. He grabbed Edward whilst he was on his next leap and managed to grab hold of his right leg, which he used as a spring-board to get up on to his back. As he jumped there was an ear splitting crack and Edward's leg flew off, nearly making Emmett laugh. What a crude way to kill a vampire. After that, his brother glared at him with blazing crimson eyes. Emmett gasped. He had been drinking from _humans_? Wow…he really was messed up. He grabbed his rolling leg and stuck it into place, showing a face full of pain for a second, before running off in the direction of deeper forests. Emmett himself turned the opposite way, towards Bella, while grabbing his fallen arm and painfully shoving it back into place, where it stuck itself. Shuddering, he found himself already at Charlie's door. He knocked. He waited.

Emmett was unpleasantly surprised when Jacob Black answered the door. As soon as he knocked, a foul wet-dog smell drifted to him. The pale blue door swung open and the tall werewolf looked lazily at Emmett, but when he realised who it was his eyes widened and he tried to slam the door shut. Emmett stopped it with his hand.

"Please, Jacob, I just want to talk to Bella." He whispered.

"No." Jacob's husky voice was angry. "You've said enough." He slammed the door in Emmett's surprised face, who crept to the thick forest behind the Swan's residence. He decided to wait. Jacob would leave eventually, and that would give Emmett a chance to talk to Bella.

Bella's POV

Jacob was different when he returned from the front door. His face hid nothing of the anger playing across it. His hands were shaking slightly, and Bella knew that wasn't good. So she walked upstairs, tugging Jake along with her. When they made it to her room Jacob paced, occasionally glaring out the window. Finally, Bella had enough.

"Jake, what's the matter? Who was at the door?" she demanded, grabbing his arm to stop his annoying pacing. He faced her with a blank expression.

"I – no one." His lies were all too easy to detect. He was nervous, too.

"Jake, _don't lie to me_!" Bella cried. What was he hiding from her?

"Okay! Fine! But you won't be happy!" Jacob was shouting too, now. "It was your bloodsucker buddy, Emmett!" Her eyes widened, and Bella closed them quickly to avoid tears making it to her cheeks.

"Emmett. He was…here?" she couldn't believe it. Maybe he really _did _still love her…maybe what he said really was a mistake. Bella shook that last thought out of her already crowded head. _I can't let myself fall for him again, in case he breaks my heart again. _She thought silently.

"Yes." Jacob snapped, making Bella open her eyes. She wiped them with her sleeve and watched Jacob walk over to her desk, where he lifted something Bella couldn't see. She stood and silently walked over to his side, and another tear streamed down her face when she saw what he held.

It was a plain silver picture frame with a photo of Jacob and Bella. Charlie had taken that photo. They were laughing at something out of the focus, but they sat next to each other. On the frame hung the little charm bracelet with the tiny carved wolf and the little diamond. These made Bella smile.

This was the first time she had cried,

In happiness.

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**Did you like that? I don't care if you did or didn't. There is NO EXCUSE not to review. (...Please?)**

**Lauren **


	8. Visions

**Chapter Eight**

**I'm happy with the reviews on the last chapter! Gone up a bit! Anyway, here's Chapter 8. Slightly shorter because of heavy homework loads and school.**

**Song For this Chapter:**

**Shatter (Turn the car around) – O.A.R**

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Bella's POV

It hurt when Jake left.

Bella had forgotten about Emmett when he was with her. It had been just them. Best friends – or was there anything more? No! Yes. They were above the level of '_just friends'_, but that was it.

As soon as he disappeared out the door a pain seized her chest, her heart beat faster. Clenching her sore fists, Bella stomped off up to her room. She threw open the creaking door and collapsed on to her bed. Now that no one was here to see it, she opened the floodgate of tears in her eyes.

She lay there crying for a little past an hour, and finally drifted off to sleep.

_I touched his face. _

"_Look," I said. "I love you more than everything else in the world combined. Isn't that enough?"_

"_Yes, it is enough," he answered, smiling. "Enough for forever." And he leaned down to press his cold lips once more to my throat._

_Edward._

_I love you._

_I loved you. _

_Do I still love you?_

Bella woke with a jolt, throwing her hand up to her neck. She could still feel his cold caress, which made her shiver. She didn't love Edward anymore! Or that's what she had been telling herself. But was it really true? The answer she would never admit to anyone, not even herself. She couldn't love or let anyone love her anymore. A heart would be broken in the end, and not always her own. Bella let her gaze wonder to the window. It was still dark outside, but a streetlight left a white glow on her window. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she noticed that the light was particularly projecting in a certain direction…or…_no. _Bella's eyes widened. It wasn't a glow. It was someone's _face_. A familiar, deathly pale face. One she had just seen in a dream. His face was blank, staring at Bella. But that couldn't have been him…his eyes had changed dramatically. They blazed a clear crimson, standing out even with his porcelain skin. His expression changed ever so slightly, letting a pinch of sadness and longing into the blank mask that he wore.

"Edward?" Bella whispered. The boy outside flinched, and nodded slightly to her.

"Bella." He mouthed.

And then he was gone.

Jasper's POV

Jasper sensed more fear radiating from Alice, but was unable to do anything as she was stuck in a terrible faze of visions. It started five hours ago, Carlisle had been talking with Alice about her recent visions. He had mentioned Bella and Alice had slipped into a vision. This was by far the longest she had ever had, and no one could predict just when it would end. Jasper was alert as he heard her draw in a quick breath to speak.

"_Carlisle…_" Alice mouthed silently. He sat at her side on the couch, grasping her hands and looking into her golden eyes than betrayed no emotion.

"_I'm worried…she's never been like this…_" she continued. Jasper slid off the couch and kneeled in front of her.

"Alice? Can you hear me?" he demanded, letting out the breath he was holding. Alice gave no answer, but there was noise from upstairs. Esme was speaking. Jasper listened closely.

"Carlisle," Esme murmured. "I'm worried…she's never been like this." Her emotions, as Jasper could pick up, were simply fear and worry mixed together. Esme had just repeated what Alice had said…but she couldn't have heard. There was no way. What was Alice foreseeing?

Suddenly, her blank eyes widened and she dug her nails into Jasper's hands.

"Rosalie!" she shrieked. "Rosalie, _no!_" A look of horrific pain broke through her emotionless mask and she breathed heavily, before closing her eyes and shivering. When she opened her eyes, the blank look had gone and she looked down at Jasper.

"Jazz?" she whispered. He slid back on to the couch and let her fall into his embrace.

"I'm right here." He murmured.

Alice's POV

After the torturous visions, Jasper's arms were the only place that Alice felt safe in. Images flicked through her confused mind, memories of the vision.

"Alice," he whispered. Sighing, Alice opened her eyes. "What did you see?" she ground her teeth. It all came down to what she saw. Always. When was the last time Jazz had asked _if she was okay_? Or at least waited for her to recover?

_That's all you care about, isn't it? _Alice thought silently. He must've not picked up her annoyance, because he repeated the question.

"Alice? What did you see?" Jasper laid a hand on her arm. She didn't make a move to remove it.

"I…Not now Jasper. Please." Alice murmured, standing up. She brushed at fake dust on her skirt and walked to the door. The only noise was the jingling of the zippers on her blue leather jacket. She cast a glance at Jasper and managed a weak apologetic smile before opening the front door and walking down the few steps. Even with heeled boots, as a vampire she was graceful as Alice ran around to the back of the house, where she ran until she came to the small river. She leapt over it without stopping and felt the warm sun comfort her. Alice landed smoothly in grass and continued. She avoided trees easily, listening to small animals hide as she flew by.

Alice sat atop a small boulder, looking out over the huge forest. She was on a hill that she regularly went to. Here she felt it easier to think. Bringing it out from memory, Alice went through the vision she had. She recalled exactly what happened. But it wasn't through her eyes that the vision took place. It was through Bella's.

_ALICE'S VISION_

_I sit in this small room, no windows, just a large, locked door. I can see my spilled blood, and I know they can smell it too. The large door opens. Someone walks in. I cower in terror as I recognise her as one of _them. _She sweeps her red hair behind her shoulders and walks forward. She crouches next to me and a pathetic whimper escapes my shaking lips. With a final snarl she grabs me by the neck. I scream and let my tears flow as her mouth descends on my pale neck. After a sharp pinch of her teeth sinking into my neck, it is only misery. I feel pain as I had never felt it before. I try to scream, but I can't move, or make a sound. It feels like I'm being burned alive – _slowly. _Nothing can compare to this torture. _

_I feel the life being drained from my weak, human body. Fiery venom enters my system, and I find my voice. I can hear a horrible, tortured scream coming from somewhere – is that me? It fits the burning I'm going through._

_After what felt like years, the pain fades. I feel warm…the warmth gets a little hotter, but comfortable. Hotter. Hotter. It's now a little too hot for comfort…no, now it's _burning. _It spreads through me in a quick flash of pain, but it's burned everything inside me. There is nothing left. I can't feel…_

_My life flashes before my eyes. I realise what I've taken for granted. Charlie. Renee. My friends. I think of the people I love. The Cullens. The wolves. Jacob. Edward and Emmett._

_And I died._

Even memories of the pain brought it back. Alice remembered when she too had gone through that. Her change into a vampire. But in the vision Bella hadn't changed. She'd been killed. Drained of blood. Alice couldn't let that happen. But whenever she tried to focus on Bella her head hurt. _Really _hurt. So she continued with her vision, the second half. It was in no one's eyes. She was just observing.

_I can see myself sitting there with Jasper. He's begging me to snap out of it. I hear Esme speak upstairs._

"_Carlisle. I'm worried; she's never been like this." I think about these words, wondering what they meant. As I cast another glance towards my unmoving body I remember. I am having a vision of…myself having a vision. I see Jasper speak once more._

_The scene changes dramatically. I am no longer watching a peaceful house, but a forest. Not a familiar one. A beautiful vampire is leaning against a tall tree, fidgeting impatiently. She jumps to her feet as two other vampires appear before her. I recognise one of them. It's the vampire who killed Bella in her other vision. They spoke muted words, Rosalie smiled grimly and the three vampires disappeared._

_There is a final scene change, but Bella has returned. It's a different version of her death. Here, Bella is blindly scrambling around a dark building. She's calling out a name. I read her lips._

"_Emmett?" she's calling. But Emmett does not come, instead Rosalie. She strides forward and holds Bella's shoulders. With a few murmured words, she leans forward as if to embrace her, but instead sinks her teeth into Bella's shoulder. _

"_Rosalie! Rosalie! NO!" I yell. But I can't do anything but watch as the human falls on the ground. Her heart no longer gives a steady beat. It pounds very slowly and desperately. Rosalie is still leaning over her, drinking. _

_Bella Swan's heart stops. _

These visions had repeated themselves over and over, making sure that they were burned into Alice's mind. If these visions had any chance of actually happening, Bella was in a lot of danger.

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**How did you guys like that? Any views on the visions? Boring/interesting chapter? I really care what you write if you review.**

**Lauren **


	9. Will She Forgive Me?

**Well, here's the next chapter. I'm working on trying to upload them more often! **

**Songs for this chapter: Yellow **& **The Scientist; both by Coldplay.**

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**Chapter Nine**

**Emmett's POV**

Emmett waited a full two hours after Edward left to go see Bella. He was standing as still as a statue behind her house, eyes focussed on her bedroom window. As soon as he knew it was okay to go, Emmett launched himself up into the air and grabbed the first ledge soundlessly. He swung on to the next wooden ledge and peered through the dark window.

Emmett looked into a familiar room; the one that looked like it could belong to a fourty-year-old. There were no posters, just a desk, wardrobe, bed and bookshelf. On the bed was the beautiful Bella herself, sleeping. Praying that it would not creak, Emmett unlatched the window with a soft _crack _and opened it.

She stirred but did not wake.

He lifted myself into the room and closed the window behind him. All around this room was the horrible werewolf scent. _Jacob Black. _His face wrinkled in disgust, but Emmett did not let his eyes leave Bella's pale face. Walking slowly and silently, he made his way to the desk and turned the chair to face her. He sat and waited for her to wake up.

"Emmett…" Bella's murmur startled him – was she awake? Did she know he was here? Her eyes were closed. She was dreaming about Emmett. He didn't know if this was a good or bad thing – nightmare or a peaceful dream? He'd have to wait and see.

**Bella's POV**

_Emmett. Jacob. Edward. The Cullens. Charlie. Renee. Phil. The wolf pack. Jessica and Angela. Billy. Charlie. _

_Names and faces flash through my dream. But it always circles back to_

_Emmett. Jacob. Edward._

_They linger longer in my dream vision, and finally memories sprout when each come by._

_Emmett._

_The day we met. The few weeks we spent together. The day we left Forks. Even the little things, like that quick kiss at the airport's secuirity, when I fell asleep in Emmett's arms. When he said he loved Rosalie. When my heart broke. When I left him._

_Jacob._

_The day we met, when I got my new truck. Walking down the beaches of La Push and telling scary stories. Becoming best friends. Discovering that Jacob was a werewolf. Repairing motorcycles when Edward was gone hunting. Riding the motorcycles - just because Edward told me not to. Leaving Jacob miserable when I left with Emmett. Jacob hugging me at the hotel. Him protecting me from the vampire. _

_The scene of my dream changed from bright colours to a dull, icy grey._

_Edward._

_Meeting in our Biology class. Discovering that he was a vampire. Falling in love. The (dreaded) Prom. My boring eighteenth birthday*. Him protecting me from visiting vampires. Our kiss outside his house. Forgetting our love. Forgetting Edward._

_Dark scenes cloud my mind..._

_Charlie in disbelief when I said I was leaving._

_Leaving Jacob and Edward heart-broken._

_Leaving Angela and Jessica with the simple explanation of "I'm leaving"._

_Hurting Billy by hurting Jacob. _

_It seems that loving Emmett hurt everybody._

Bella came into consciousness slowly, not opening her eyes. _No! I need rest! _But she couldn't fall asleep again, no matter how hard she tried. Groaning loudly, Bella rolled over onto her side and opened her heavy eyelids. She glanced at the desk, her vision still hazy. Something was blocking the computer screen.

No...some_one. _Bella jumped up and let out a scream.

Emmett sat there.

**Emmett's POV**

Emmett was shocked by Bella's scream. Was she afraid of him?

"Shh! Bella, it's me, Emmett!" he whispered. Sure enough, she stopped and stared at me with large, blurry and tear-filled brown eyes. After a minute, she spoke.

"I -" she swallowed and her voice shook. "W-why are you here?" No pain made it's way on to her face. Emmett replied immediately.

"Because I need to make things right again. I'm so sorry Bella, you don't know how much. I know it will be hard to forgive me for what I said, but please. I love you, and I made a horrible mistake. I'm so, so sorry. Please, will you consider taking me back?" I begged.

Bella didn't speak.

"Bella -"

"Shut _up_. Let me think for a minute." she snapped. But she didn't sound like she could be angry; only like she was trying. Bella turned, laying on her bed. She had her back to me, but I could her her uneven breathing.

Bella had lay there in silence for half an hour now. At first there was silence, then a minute of crying, and now silence again.

Emmett just sat and watched her, waiting. To a God that would damn him, he prayed for her to forgive him.

**Jasper's POV**

Jasper followed Alice's distinct scent; zooming through the thick green forest. Whilst a part of his mind was focussed on finding her, another was thinking about how careless he'd been. While in her vision, Alice had been in such pain, yet he had not comforted her. His first priority was to know what she saw. Guilt weighed him down as he ran; but he didn't stop. Halfway there, a different scent caught his attention. _Human. _Two.

Jasper's mind turned off and the hunter inside him took over. _No! _He tried to hold on to sanity; to finding Alice. But the scent was too strong, to close. He was already on the human's trail. He hadn't fed in so long...the hikers came into sight, not noticing the vampire stalking them.

_No! I can't do this_! _Why couldn't I have just hunted earlier? _Jasper's mind screamed at him. Before he knew what he was doing, the humans' blood filled his senses.

"...crap. Stupid thorn!" a hiker's gruff voice seeped into Jasper's ears.

"Y'all right?" the other asked.

"Yeah. Just a lil' blood."

But it was enough for Jasper to smell, and in an instant he was on top of the bleeding man. He snarled and opened his mouth, leaning down to drink the man's blood...

_To Be Continued..._

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**MWAHAHA! I know that _I _hate "to be continued"'s, but I just HAD to do it. I made this chapter really short, but the next one will be longer, which also means it may take longer to write.**

**In other news...**

**I owe you some help in understanding this story.. Bella's dream must have been a bit confusing; so here's an explanation as to what happened before New Love. **

**Twilight - All normal events occurred; _except _James' coven never came to Forks, so the end bit never happened.**

**New Moon - *Bella had the same birthday but she never got that papercut, leading to Edward never leaving; but Bella did might find out that Jacob was a werewolf.**

**I hope everything's clear now! Any questions? Mention them in a review. **


	10. Broken Faith

**Chapter Ten**

**(Broken/Missing – Evanescence)**

Jasper's POV

He was _so close. _Only an inch away from the pulsing red warmth in the man's neck; but Jasper couldn't control himself. He had forgotten everything else. His eyes were endless black pits that screamed _hungry _and _dangerous _to anyone that dared look into them.

Behind him, the other hiker cried out in pure fear when he saw Jasper and started yelling gibberish as he backed off into the trees. Something was holding Jasper back from killing the man underneath him. He couldn't move; mostly because if he did he was sure that he would lose his control. The second hiker was already gone with a few twig snaps.

"W…well?" the small, pained voice brought Jasper's attention back to the man underneath him. He studied the human's face.

"Just…kill me. But…make it quick." He whispered.

"_Fine. K-kill me, but make it quick." _The words spoken so long ago by a victim that Jasper never forgot. Without warning a memory clouded his vision.

_I follow a young girl down a dark street. She's short – looks about fourteen. I read her emotions. She's miserable…and scared. Good, she's right to be scared of me. I creep up behind her as she stops. The only light is the faint glow of a far street light. I clasp a pale hand around her mouth. The girl tries to scream and pry my hand off, but I drag her backwards and into a doorway. I turn her to face me, but I hesitate. Her large, human brown eyes seem…so innocent. She whimpered and my hand dropped._

"_Fine. K-kill me, but make it…quick." She sobbed. That was the last time I ever hunted a human. I realise what I have become…I have nearly lost my humanity to the monster inside me. I yell out to the darkness in anger and run to wherever my legs will take me._

Jasper was pulled back to the present suddenly, to the man cowering beneath him.

"No…this isn't right…" Jasper whispered, releasing the pressure on the man. He sighed and stood up.

"I'm so, so sorry. But I swear if you tell a soul about this I _will_ know and I'll kill you next time." A bluff. But it was enough to scare the man into crawling backwards, his wide eyes never leaving the vampire's. As soon as he felt a tree behind him he started running down the hill.

"Wait!" Jasper called. "Just one thing…" he was in front of the running man in a millisecond. The sane part of his mind that saved this human had drowned in his thirst. He held the man by his shoulders.

"What's your name?" Jasper demanded.

"I…J-Jason." He replied, shaking in fear.

"Well, _Jason. _I'm afraid to say that I'm incredibly thirsty, and you just _happen to be here._ So, I'll be nice enough not to kill you." And to himself he whispered, "_Completely._"

With that statement he bit into the human's neck, paralyzing him. He kept drinking whilst sending his venom into his system, and finally built up the self control to stop. But he couldn't stay near the dripping blood – Jasper ran and tried to drown out the man's pain filled screams. He was turning into a vampire.

Jason's POV

_Why me? Why did _I _have to die? _Jason Dave was just an innocent, normal man. He had a decent life, a sixteen-year-old daughter and a loving wife.

But he felt as if he would die, here and now. Attacked by some…_monster _in the middle of nowhere with no one to hear his screams and help him. The pain inside Jason was too horrible to describe, it was like he was burning. He remembered the time he had broken his leg on his motorcycle, the pain of that. He'd take that a thousand times and _smile_ if he could trade this pain. He remembered a prank-gone-bad, where he was drenched in boiling water. Jason could take that a _million times _and be happy if there was any way to get rid of this burning. It felt as if he was getting hit by a hundred trains going at incredible speeds, getting tortured with deadly weapons, breaking every bone in his body, being buried alive, suffocating – every pain he could think of, added together, was not _nearly _as painful as the _agony_ he was going through. So he lay crumpled on the ground and awaited his death.

Jason remembered his friend Oscar. He had just left him there at the mercy of the monster. That _bastard. _They were best friends!Almost like brothers!

He had _always _been there for Oscar, yet this _one time _that Jason needed him he was too damn scared. But another part of Jason was glad that Oscar had left. At least _he _would survive.

He tried to think more, but was engulfed in the agony of the fire that was consuming him completely.

Couldn't Jason at least die in peace?

Jasper's POV

Jasper no longer ran towards Alice. Instead he ran in the opposite direction of her – and Forks. He couldn't return to the Cullens, not after what he'd done. Carlisle would hate him. Esme would cry. Alice…

Jasper couldn't think about her. How much he had broken her faith in him. So he ran, and this time he wasn't planning on stopping.

Alice's POV

After only a short period of time, Alice found sitting on the hill useless. She had thought over the vision a thousand times, and she had done nothing. Before telling her family, or more importantly, Emmett, she would return to Jasper and apologise for overreacting. He cared about her, and one little slip wouldn't break them.

So Alice stood and wiped invisible dust off of her jeans. She was about to run when she heard a tortured scream. Only with her enhanced senses could she hear this. Being Alice, she ran towards the sound, desperately wanting to help whoever was in such pain. As she got closer, she caught a human scent. And blood. It overwhelmed her and she focussed on getting to it.

As Alice entered the tiny clearing in the trees a new scent hit her. Jasper's. What would he be doing here? But her question was answered as she looked down at the man writhing in pain.

Could Jasper have done that? She wondered, kneeling next to the man. He continued his screams and clawed at the ground. The side of his neck was mangled and he skin ripped violently. He had lost a lot of blood, but Alice smelled the vampire venom inside of him. Pumping slowly through his veins, changing his body. If Jasper _did _do this, it must have taken a lot of self-control to stop...which seemed impossible for Jasper; after all, he was new to the "vegetarian" diet of animals. But obviously he had changed. His scent was everywhere. Even on the poor human.

The man finally built up the strength to look up at Alice. He opened his mouth to speak, but pain-filled grunts came out.

"Shh..." Alice whispered. "It'll be okay...I'm so, so sorry." She reached forward and wrapped her arms around the man, lifting his limp body. He cried out and whimpered quietly. Alice carefully positioned him where his bleeding neck was farthest from her face, and stopped breathing. It was uncomfortable, but she managed to start running. With Alice's vampire speed, she was back at the Cullen's residence within a minute. Carlisle was waiting outside.

"Alice? What happened?" he stood in front of her, concern crossing his pale face.

"Jasper. I found him in the woods...with Jasper's scent everywhere. Carlisle, Jasper _drank his blood._ And stopped! He's changing." Alice whispered in horror. She handed the man to him and took a breath in another direction, but the scent of blood still got to her. She fought it as Carlisle carried him into the house. Alice waited outside and listened to Esme's voice for a few seconds before turning and sprinting back to the clearing.

She caught Jasper's scent and followed its trail.

Bella's POV

Emmett had left. On Bella's request. She needed time to think. He had done something horrible to her, but if he _really _loved Rosalie, why would he return to Bella and beg for forgiveness? Thoughts and images reeled through her mind. He had no reason to lie to her. Emmett wasn't like that. So maybe he told the truth after all. She didn't care. All she knew was that _she _loved him, and would do anything to have him back. So Bella decided to take her chances and forgive Emmett.

She yawned loudly and stretched her arms out in front of her.

Maybe in the morning.

Emmett's POV

Emmett was overjoyed. At least Bella was considering taking him back. He wished that she would see how much he loved her.

He was reclining upon the think branch of a tree not too far from the Swan residence, wanting to be near Bella. There was no warning to Rosalie's arrival. She melted out from the shadows and sat opposite him.

"Rosalie." Emmett's eyes widened in shock. "What...what are you doing here?"

She just rolled her eyes, and fiddled with a twig.

"Is it really such a surprise that you'd see me again? I still exist you know."

"Yeah but...never mind. Is there anything you wanted?" Emmett asked quietly, not meeting her gaze.

"Actually, yes. We need to talk. Not here though, I find it peculiar to discuss something serious in a tree." Again, no pain or anger made its way on to her blank face.

"Uh...sure I guess." Emmett was simply curious as to what she was on about, so he followed Rosalie to the forest's edge. Right by Bella's home. They were in full view to anyone that looked out of Bella's bedroom window, and luckily no one watched.

"Emmett." Rosalie brought his attention back to her.

"Yes?" Rosalie paused.

"I understand that you don't love me anymore. But I just want to know...why did you chose her?" sadness finally broke her control and flooded her face.

"Rose...I don't know. I just met her and...Fell in love I guess. I can't talk about this with you, Rosalie. I don't want to cause you pain -"

"_But I love you_!" Rosalie cried. "I saved you, and I've always loved you! And after trying so hard for you to love me, you take one glance at _her _and instantly fall in love!" her control had slipped and she was sobbing tearlessly.

"I' m sorry, Rose..." Emmett backed up slowly. He heard movement in Bella's bedroom and looked up to see her watching. The second his attention was diverted Rosalie pounced forward and pressed her mouth to his. He was frozen for a second, but tried to pull her off. Rosalie was older and stronger, and Emmett tried desperately to get away. He had never felt this weakness before. After three seconds that seemed like an eternity, Emmett focussed his strength to kick her off and run. Rosalie didn't pursue him, but stood and laughed maliciously.

Bella's POV

_No! _Bella collapsed back onto her bed, letting out a quiet cry and sobbing.

He had lied. Bella had witnessed him and Rosalie kissing. At first it seemed that he was trying to get her off of him, but it changed to something that looked like wild passion. Emmett didn't love her. He loved Rosalie. It would always be Rosalie.

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**Sorry that took so long, Christmas shopping has got in the way, and I have a bad fever. I'm skipping school today because of it and writing this in BED. It's killing my poor shoulder!**

**R&R**

**Lauren**


	11. April

**Hey! A slightly shorter chapter, I've had loads of time for writing but I've written mostly in my notebook and I keep changing it when I type it up so it's a little frustrating getting everything in order! **

**This chapter is for AllisonteamEmmett, who won that mini competition I put on with the Author's Note in Chapter Ten. April has arrived! Thanks for all the positive (well...not positive towards Emmett!) reviews! :) Enjoy!**

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Chapter Eleven

**(Careful/Pressure by Paramore)**

Jason's POV

This wasn't death.

What Jason was experiencing, he _knew _was not death. He could feel something strange and venomous seeping through him, pumping around him. Jason felt his body change in strange and painful ways. Death couldn't be this painful and this extensive. This was something he had never experienced. It was blazing slowly through the inside of his body, leaving his fast-beating heart and spreading before retracting back. This cycle was continuous and the pain excruciating. It was hard, but Jason managed to think of something other than the pain. He remembered people that he loved.

April. His daughter. Jason and his wife Isabelle had adopted her when she was fifteen.

A picture of her flashed through his mind. She was remarkably beautiful; porcelain skin that held no blemish, piercing golden eyes and dirty blonde hair artfully cut to a bob. She was a tall fifteen-year-old and a naturally good kid. She respected adults and was liked by everyone. But when the topic of her _real _parents came up, April changed. Her cheerful expression was blank and she would state the facts that everyone knew. Her parents died in a tragic car accident a year ago. She had been moving from foster homes until Jason and Isabelle Dave adopted her.

During her first month with them she was quiet and kept to herself, only speaking if spoken to first. She was very polite, but it didn't change her mood. Finally, she changed. April started talking more; she helped around the house, and got to know her adoptive parents. Now, after a year, she was very close to Jason and Isabelle, and called them by name.

She mostly grew close to Jason. She respected him and loved him as a daughter would love her father. And he loved her like a father would love his daughter. They had never fought before and April had told him everything, keeping no secrets. Or, that's what he believed. Every couple of weeks, she would have a certain day where she came home hours late after school. Usually around midnight. She always refused to tell her parents where she had been and what she had been doing, but promised it was nothing bad. Usually she made up something – she fell asleep on the bus and went too far, or she was at a friend's house. Either way, it was an unsolved mystery.

She was interested in ballet, though no one would ever guess if they met her. She listened to classic to modern rock bands and had a great admiring for strange art that no one else seemed to know. She wrote in diaries, all had locks and were hidden in strange places. Jason had promised to himself that one day he would read one of those diaries, because he expected amazing creative writing.

_Huh. _He thought bitterly. _Guess that'll never happen. _Whatever was happening to Jason didn't feel like it would end.

April's POV

Where was Jason?

April Dave's adoptive father, Jason Dave, had still not returned from his hiking trip.

Worriedly, April checked the time on her watch and was shocked at how much time had escaped her. It was around eleven thirty – nearly midnight. She leaned over her white desk and dug through books and papers until she found her phone - a sleek red touch-screen. April flicked through her contacts list until she found Jason, and hit 'call'. She pressed the phone to her ear. It was cold after a few hours of hiding under books.

One ring. Two, three, four rings. Nine rings. Finally, Jason's warm voice came through the receiver.

"Hey,"

"Jason? I've been so worried – it's -"

"You've reached Jason Dave's phone. I'm currently not available to pick up the phone right now, so please call back later or leave a message." Beep. April was speechless for a moment, but hung up. _Where was he_? She thought. She swore under her breath and paced her bedroom. Looking out the window, she saw that the streetlights had turned on, giving the street an eerie glow. After a few paces, April stopped at the window with an idea.

Smiling grimly, she unlocked the window with blurry hands and threw it open. A short blast of mid-October air hit her full in the face, but it passed as soon as it had come. Quietly, she sprung up on to the window sill and crawled the two steps outside. April glanced down. Beneath her there was no where safe to land. No bushes or grass, instead just a hard concrete driveway and a leafless tree that loomed above the house. This fall would probably ruin her new Converse...

Wiping away those thoughts, April slid into a crouch in the confined space and took a deep breath. Again she faced facts – no human could survive this fall.

She jumped.

And landed smoothly, standing straight. She bent over to examine the damage to her precious neon-green shoes. To April's surprise, they remained unharmed and in perfect condition. Feeling rather like a dog, she leaned her head back and sniffed the air. Many different smells wafted towards her. Plants, the forest, human blood, and normal household things. Glancing momentarily back at her house, April raced into the forest.

It was just behind her house, and she had already picked up Jason's scent. She followed it at a rapid speed, winding through tall trees and finally onto a trail. Oscar's scent also mingled with his. Halfway up the trail, they had decided to do some exploring, and had walked off of it and into the thick trees. April had to jump over thick underbrush and avoid piercing branches that seemed to prick up in random places. Around a couple trees, there was a dramatic change in scenery. The thick, rough underbrush and sticks were gone, and only a small clearing remained. Small, but held evidence of a long series of events. April played it out in her head.

Jason and Oscar arrived in this little clearing. Jason cut himself on that branch there, and was bleeding a little bit. Someone else arrived. There was evidence of a fight of some sort, tufts of grass moved in certain ways. Unsurprisingly, there were some unfamiliar scents.

Oscar stood here, while Jason was pinned down by our stranger _here. _April ran around the tiny area, examining different things. Oscar ran away. Jason got up and tried to run...but stopped. At the place where he stopped, it was bloody. She had to stop breathing. Dried blood matted the grass next to the many footprints in the neighbouring dust. There was little signs of struggle, and a large space where a body had been lying. A sick feeling washed through April.

Somehow everything was falling into place in this one, tiny scene.

This was a vampire attack.

Jason's trail led to a strange white house. By picking apart the different scents and footprints, April picked up that someone had carried Jason all the way here, and in the backdoor. So she followed the trail _exactly, _and quietly crept in the back door. Inside, more of the strange scents hit her. But Jason's blood was the strongest, so April let it pull her silently through a modern-looking kitchen and living room. Up the stairs...down the hall, and to a blue door.

She opened it and slipped in, but her breath caught when she saw the room. It was empty, except from what looked like a hospital bed in the corner. On it lie Jason. He was unconscious and breathing unevenly. His heart was beating rapidly against his chest. As April stepped closer, her horrors were confirmed and she smelled the vampire venom pumping through his veins.

The pain he must be in...

Before she knew it, she was laying on the side of the bed, face buried in Jason's shoulder. She began to tearlessly cry for him, and to murmur how sorry she was that he was going through this.

After what seemed like forever, she looked up into the golden eyes of Doctor Carlisle Cullen.

Jason's POV

Just as he was thinking of April – he heard her voice. If it was a memory or reality, he didn't know, but he was sure he heard her angelic voice come to him through the torture. First it was sobbing, and there was coldness at his shoulder.

"Dad...I'm so sorry. I-I'm sorry. I know what you must be going through. I'm so, so sorry!" she was apologizing? No. April didn't do this to him. But...How would she know what this burning felt like? Jason's mind was brought back to the burning. He jolted suddenly and groaned in pain. Outside of his body, there were a few words exchanged. But they were being drowned out. Jason felt as if his pounding heart would leap straight out of his body. Something alien was pumping through him, changing him...or destroying him?

April's POV

"I...I..." she found herself speechless as April tried to explain herself to Dr. Cullen. But her gaze darted back to Jason as he made a painful noise.

"It's okay," his voice was strong and confident. Carlisle patted her shoulder hesitantly. "I understand. I'll leave you for a while...but then we need to talk." He exited silently, leaving April and Jason alone. Watching his face, she noticed it change suddenly. Pain drowned it, and his mouth opened again to let out a little noise of pain.

April couldn't bare to stand there and watch, so she sat on the side of the bed and talked quietly to him, whispering soothing words. At that moment, she forgot all about the listening Cullens.

It was just her and her father.

Alice's POV

_He sits on his throne. Long, white hair and beard. Turned at an old age - and an old vampire. A stranger sits before him._

_"What is it that you need from me, young one?" the vampire asks. The man in front of him shivers._

_"I can't bear this life, but I cannot go to the Damnati - I want a painless escape from this Temptation. I've heard that you can take away the thirst for blood from the Immortals, and you can also do much more. Please spare me a painless death." the man begs. _

_"Of course." is all that the old one utters, before placing his steady hands on either side of the younger vampire's head. He mutters a few quiet words in an old tounge, and closes his eyes. It is so sudden, but already the vampire starts to radiat light. Within a minute, the vampire he is performing a spell on...disintegrates into nothingness. A light flows through the dark room, but disappears, too. _

Alice shook the vision away before it could continue - she needed to find Jasper and visions would slow her. But - wait. _Take away the thirst for blood. _Could this mysterious man from her vision really do that?

If he could...then he could save Jasper from what he had become. From himself. Alice let herself slip back into the vision.

_Lucifer. The Redeemer. The Ancient_.

As quickly as it started, Alice's vision was over. It was just names and pictures. Of Lucifer, the one that had...killed the vampire in her previous vision. These were details though, and would help her find him.

Alice turned back home.

Within a mile of her house, Alice knew that there was someone else in it. An unfamiliar scent covered the South-East part of the house. A vampire's. She walked up to the backdoor, which was wide open.

"Carlisle?" she called. "Esme?"

Esme arrived in front of her, but Carlisle was no where to be seen.

"Alice! Did you find Jasper?" Esme's eyes were huge and desperate, and Alice hated giving her bad news.

"I...no. I had a vision while following him and had to return." she explained.

"A vision?" Carlisle had appeared in front of her. "What did you see?"

Alice paused before answering.

"First," she said. "I want to know who the _hell _is that girl." Because a stranger stood in the doorway, watching Alice.

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**Thanks for reading! To anyone that DIDN'T use an online translator, "Damnita" from the vision means "The Damned" in latin. You'll find out about them soon...IN DUE TIME, MY FRIENDS! MWAHAHAHAHA! **

**Just a 'lil' warning...April and Alice WILL NOT get along...hee hee. Click that little review button and follow the instructions! :)**


	12. Shatter

**As Always, thanks for the reviews! Here's a quicker update - I have nothing to do at night! Sleep? Pfft. Naah. Too busy getting these chapters up! :)**

**Wonder & Fragile by Megan McCauley**

Emmett's POV

Charlie wouldn't let Emmett inside.

He had decided to use the front door, since it was still the grey daytime, and had been met by a furious Charlie that was too stubborn to let Emmett in.

"Please, Mr. Swan," he begged, holding the door from closing. "I just want to talk to her for a minute."

"I said _no, _Emmett, now get off my property!" Charlie snapped.

"But -"

"I said, _leave_!" he yelled. "Just go! You 'got no right to see her!"  
"Dad?" Bella called from upstairs. Charlie turned around to peer at the stairs, face still holding a glare.

"Yeah, Bells?" he yelled. He motioned for Emmett to leave, but Bella was already bounding down the stairs. She saw Emmett and her breath caught.

"Its okay, Dad. I just need to talk to him for a minute." Bella murmured, laying a gentle hand on Charlie's shoulder. He sighed and nodded slowly before backing off into the living room.

"Thanks." Emmett sighed and stepped inside.

"Actually, we can talk outside. Before I head out." The last part was quieter, not intended for Charlie's hearing. Bella motioned to the door and Emmett followed her out to her truck. He noticed that she had a bulging bag on her back. As soon as she turned to face him words were falling out of Emmett's mouth.

"Bella, I'm so, sorry, but you _saw _what happened and we need to talk reasonably about it. I know what it might have looked like but -"

"I know." Bella's cold tone cut Emmett off from what he had been about to say.

"You...oh. That's...great!" he grinned slightly and leaned slightly closer to Bella. The motion was barely noticeable.

"I've been..." she began, but paused. "I've been thinking. And I was stubborn. I witnessed it, and I know you were just trying to...get her off of you. And I also forgive you for...our past troubles." Emmett's face lit up.

"_But. _It's...Rosalie."

"Bella -"

"_Wait_! Let me finish!" She held up a hand and took a deep breath before continuing. "It's not anything to do with your feelings for her. It's that...well, she has feelings for _you. _And that's my problem. She knew I was watching, and was trying to make a point. She hates me more than ever now that I've forgiven you, and _you yourself _said, a while ago, that she could try to kill me. She's strong, Emmett. She can do what she wants, even kill me. You won't _always _be there. What if her next tactic for getting you back is murder?

"Also, those vampires at the airport. I don't think their appearance was random. They could've been sent by Rosalie! And...In that hotel. One of them threatened me, and later _attacked _me when I was with Jake. She's already trying to kill me!" Bella's voice was higher and desperate. Emmett took a long pause before his answer.

"You've thought about this a lot, haven't you?" he asked quietly. Bella nodded and looked down at the ground.

"Bella...we can leave. I can protect you. We actually were going to leave before...for these reasons. There's no reason not to now." Emmett murmured, trying not to sound like he was begging.

"That's right. I've been meaning to ask you something," Bella said. "Where were we going?"

"We...We were going to Africa." He answered slowly. Something sparked up in Bella's face.

"Of course. Emmett, I know you'll deny it, but you still have feelings for Rosalie. You won't admit it, but small things show. She knows it, too. That confirms everything. It's not safe, and...I just...can't." Bella fumbled for words as she brought her gaze up to Emmett's.

"What...what are you saying, Bella?" Emmett asked quietly. Bella took a deep breath and turned away.

"I'm saying that we're...over. Not together anymore. We can't be. I'm sorry. I won't be the weak one here." She turned her face away from his, but Emmett heard her cry softly. She opened her car door and got in it slowly, not looking back. After she shut it, Emmett heard the lock click and the engine start. His mouth hung wide open, but finally he looked down.

Bella's POV

Breaking up with Emmett was one of the hardest things Bella had ever done.

But she did it.

Tears flooding her eyes, Bella started the engine of her old Chevy. Emmett made no move to stop her, but stood outside, mouth open and eyes not moving. Bella blinked but couldn't see anymore because of the wetness in her eyes. Leaning down, she grabbed a tissue from the glove compartment and wiped her eyes hastily. Shaking, she threw her backpack down on the seat next to her. The whole car shook with her force...which was a bit strange. But looking up at her side window, she saw Emmett outside yelling and fiddling with the door handle. He had hit the side of the truck, probably seriously damaging it. He felt the engine start and leaned down to get his face in level with the window.

"...please! Bella!" she heard only snippets of what Emmett was yelling through the glass. Suddenly, he changed. His desperate golden eyes became larger and took on a terrifying, furious look. He stood and his hands curled at his sides. He truly looked like a monster as he lifted his hand, which curled into a fist. He leaned forward and let his hand blindly strike the car. He hit the window, and Bella barely had time to duck before the window exploded on her.

Razor-sharp shards of glass flew everywhere, covering Bella and the small area around her.

Terrified, Bella's foot pressed down on the gas and she grabbed the steering wheel as she sped forward. She could barely see through her hair to navigate her way out of the driveway and down the street. The whole time she was shaking and whimpering. When she had moved onto a larger street, she checked her mirrors. No cars in sight and a pale silhouette was following through the forest.

Emmett.

Emmett's POV

No! He hadn't meant to break the window!

But Emmett had lost control – something had snapped inside of him and he had taken out his frustration on Bella, striking out at her car. He wanted so badly to take it back – but Bella was already speeding down the road, and he was following through the forest. He only wanted to make her pay for how she had hurt him...abandoned him. Emmett couldn't think straight, so he kept following her. He recognised the route – they were going to the Cullen's residence.

Bella's POV

Arriving at the Cullen's house was like arriving at home.

The familiar white house welcomed her, but she didn't dare unlock her doors. Instead, she dug out her cell phone and dialled Alice's number. Outside, she saw movement in the corner of her sight. A white ghost, flying past.

_Come on, Alice_! She thought. _Pick up!_

Alice's POV

Somewhere in the house, Alice's mobile phone rang. She couldn't care less. She was busy talking to...already she had forgotten the girl's name. Carlisle and Esme had left in a flash, only telling her the girl's name.

"So, you're Alice? Jasper's mate? Aren't you supposed to be hunting him down?" the girl's strong voice broke Alice's void of thought.

"Yeah...wait – hey! I'm not _hunting _him! I was just trying to get him to stop so I could talk some sense into him!" Alice denied.

"_Talk some sense_? Are you kidding? I thought you guys would at least, you know, _punish _him for breaking his 'diet'!" April yelled. Obviously one to overreacted, Alice noted mentally.

"Who are _you _to decide whether or not Jasper should be punished?" Alice demanded.

"I – April. My name is April." She said simply.

"Oh that's it, huh? No last name, reason-for-being-here, or purpose for so rudely yelling at me?" Alice snapped. 'April' just rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, well when I meet someone I don't exactly launch into a tale of family history."

"Well I'm only asking for a more detailed 'who are you' answer."

April sighed impatiently.

"Fine. My name is April Dave, adopted daughter of Isabelle and Jason Dave. Jason is the one that your boyfriend bit, by the way." She said the last part furiously.

"Adopted daughter? But you're a _vampire_! Don't you think they'd notice that you hadn't aged after a couple years?" Alice nearly laughed.

"Listen." April's voice was cold and nearly frightening. "I just wanted a normal, human life. So I got adopted. I have been for a year now. I was planning on leaving...eventually. Maybe next year. But I actually grew close to the Daves, and now the guy I was beginning to think of as a father is going to turn into a _damn vampire_!" April yelled.

"Jeez, calm down Miss Month." It slipped out; Alice hadn't meant to make that immature joke. "How about some history? And how you managed to live in Forks without us noticing?" April took some deep breaths before speaking, glaring at Alice all the while.

"Changed in 1936, by vampire-unknown. My name was Alicia McCarty. I changed it when I decided to re-enter the human world. I had three brothers; one went missing a year before I was changed. When I realised that there were other vampires in the area," she paused for breath. "I lied low. Went to a different school. Hunted in farther areas. Didn't draw attention to myself. Actually, it was kind of easy. You guys are real idiots."

_1936..._Alice thought. _Wasn't Emmett changed in 1935_?

"Hey – out of curiosity – what was your brother's name? The one that went missing?" Alice asked.

"Emmett." April answered immediately. An explosion of thoughts lit up Alice's mind, and she ran to the table across the room and back in a flash. She returned with a framed photograph of Emmett and Rosalie. She showed it to April, pointing to Emmett.

"Who's this to you?" she asked, holding her breath.

"Oh, God..." April whispered. "That's my brother."

**Bella's POV**

Alice still wouldn't pick up, and the sun was setting outside. Out of fright and annoyance, Bella slammed her hand down on the steering wheel, honking her car horn. She repeated the movement, causing a particularly annoying noise. A light came on inside, and the front door opened. Alice's face popped out, along with an unfamiliar one. Bella honked three more times before Alice ghosted through the air and down to her window. She took in Bella's beat up car and smashed window, and ran over to her.

"Bella?" She asked. "What happened?"

"It's Emmett," she whispered. "He's...lost it. Please, help me. He's here."

Emmett stepped out of the shadows.

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**Love it? Hate it? Spotted something wrong? Review, please! Chapters should be coming in WAY faster over the Christmas break! Christmas in two days...can't wait!**

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Chapter Twelve


	13. Reunited

**Thanks for the one review on Chapter Twelve! **

**Naww, it's okay. At least I got one. Seriously, thanks to that person :) See, chapters coming in faster! I couldn't think of any good songs for this chapter, so if you have any amazing ideas please include them in reviews! :D****

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April's POV

All April could focus on was her brother.

Emmett, thought dead for decades, stood before her in the grass. He hadn't changed much – but his skin was paler and his hair shorter. He didn't notice her gaze, but concentrated on the car behind Alice. It was a rusty orange Chevy truck. Inside, April could smell a human. Her nose wrinkled in disgust. This human's blood was _too _sweet and gave to appeal to her. But Emmett couldn't take his eyes away.

"Emmett?" April whispered. She knew that if she was human, she'd be crying. She hadn't seen him in around seventy years. Emmett's gaze unwillingly shifted from the truck and he looked over at April. His face gave no hint of recognition.

"Emmett?" she asked again after a moment of silence. "It's me...Alicia." Alice flinched, still not used to them having the same original name. Emmett's whole head snapped in her direction, and his eyes searched her face desperately. After a moment, his muscles tightened and he froze. His mouth opened slightly as it to speak, but no sound came out. Finally, he managed.

"A...Alicia?" he whispered. His voice nearly broke. April nodded, smiling sadly.

"Yes." She murmured, closing the distance between them. She threw herself into a hug, making Emmett stagger backwards. He was still frozen.

"But...how?" he whispered, still embracing his sister. She pulled back and met his gaze.

"A year after you disappeared, I don't remember who did it." April said quietly. Her attention shifted to Alice when she heard her whisper to the human in the truck.

"Bella?" she asked. "Are you alright?" There was silence, followed by a slight rustling and what sounded like nodding. Too quiet for human ears.

"Okay," Alice murmured, standing up straight. She flashed over to the other side and got in the passenger seat.

"Drive." She said slowly, looking out at April. She could see the human now; her wide, frightened brown eyes wouldn't leave the space between April and Emmett. But finally, she tore her gaze away and started the car. It made a pained, wheezing noise before reluctantly moving. They drove away from the house and down the dark driveway, leaving April and Emmett. Alone.

Laurent's POV

Getting James to work with Laurent had been hard, but after he had spoken of the protection the girl had, he seemed more eager. He had launched into a silent hour of thought, leaving Laurent to sit and watch. When it finally finished, he sat up straight and looked at the other vampire with mischievous eyes.

"I have a plan." He grinned mysteriously and Laurent rolled his eyes impatiently.

"I guessed that one. What is it?" he demanded. James shifted in his seat and stared at the window in the corner of the room.

"First, I need you to be my...spy. Follow her around. Give me updates. From there, I can do the rest." He explained simply.

"That's it? That took you _an hour_?" Laurent snapped.

"No, it took me an hour to think up _my _part."

"And that is...?"

"You'll see." With that he left the room in a flash. Laurent hated that about him. He never gave many details – leaving the person he talked to very annoyed, and curious. It was his talent.

Alice's POV

Whatever had Bella so frightened was serious enough that she was leaving Forks. And she claimed that it was Emmett.

So much was going on – Alice wasn't surprised that another thing had been added to the list. First, there were the inter-family problems about Bella and Emmett. Jasper had left. A new vampire would join them soon. Alice had troubling visions. Alice had just found Emmett's long-lost sister. And now, Bella's problems. _Seriously, when did this girl _not_ have something wrong with her life?_ Alice thought bitterly. But she sat next to Bella in the car and let her drive out of the town she had called home for so long.

"Okay, Bella." Alice finally spoke.

"Okay, what?"

"You can tell me what happened now." She rolled her eyes impatiently. Bella sighed.

"I...broke up with Emmett." She whispered, keeping her eyes on the road.

"_What?_" Alice yelled, slamming her hand down on the dashboard. She was careful to use human strength, not damaging the falling-apart car.

"You guys are the strangest couple I've _ever _seen. First, you're heartbroken and desperate to get Emmett back – when you do, you break up with him within the same day! Then, he gets all mad and..." Alice realised that she was babbling and stopped abruptly.

"Yeah." She finished. Bella sighed – again.

"I had to, Alice! Rosalie...Rosalie's a _vampire_, and she made it pretty clear that she wanted Emmett back. Do you think she'll _actually _let us be together? No. Way. So, for our...safety, and for other reasons, I had to end us." She explained, hands tightening on the wheel.

"Other reasons...?" Alice prompted. Bella sighed, for what, the third time? Did this girl have some sort of breathing problem or something?

"He still loves Rosalie." She murmured.

"Oh not _this _again! I have _all the details,_ he said he loved Rosalie, but worked his ass off to get you back, and to prove to you that it wasn't true -" Alice was cut off by Bella's shouts.

"Hey!" she yelled. "Let me finish!" She was silent, and Bella took a deep breath.

"That, _plus _the fact that he couldn't have gotten over her _that _fast. _Plus, _we were going to go to _Africa_! The place that he spent so many years with Rosalie at! Does this not say anything to you?" she yelled.

"Yes, and that's why you need to give him _time_! Just that! Of course he's not over her yet – they've been together for _decades. _And he's going through a lot right now – for Christ's sake, he just found his long-lost-turned-vampire sister! Also – wait, what are you doing?" Alice stopped talking. Bella was pulling over at the side of the road.

"You," she said angrily. "Are getting out."

"What? Why?" Alice moaned.

"I brought you with me to talk with – because you're my friend! I thought you'd understand, but _no. _You just leap onto..." she paused and thought for a moment. "_Team Emmett. _And ignore whatever I try to say!"

"Teams? _Really_? We're just having a serious conversation, and I'm trying to help you by bringing light to the matter!" Alice complained.

"Oh, so your solution just solves everything, huh?" Bella's previous fear of Emmett's anger was long gone, and it was replaced by her own anger at Alice.

"No, but -"

"I don't want to hear it, Alice! Go run back to your _own _boyfriend!" Oh, that was harsh. Bella knew what was going on with Jasper – via text messages – and could _not _say that. So, feeling her own anger bubble up, Alice opened her door and got out of the truck, slamming it furiously behind her. Bella was making all the Cullens angry today. With a quiet curse, Alice sped off back to the Cullens' house.

Bella's POV

Oh great. Bella was just getting _all _the vampires wound up today, wasn't she? With a groan, Bella leaned forward and pressed her forehead to the steering wheel, setting off the horn. She jumped and flew back in her seat.

"Stupid, stupid!" she muttered, starting the car again. She pulled into the opposite side of the road and started driving back to the Cullens' house. She sped up, knowing there was a while to go. Halfway there, her truck started slowing. Bella peered at the gas – and swore. The little pointer was a millimetre away from empty. Still cussing, she pulled over on the side of the road again. When she tried to start the truck again, no sound came and it refused to start.

_No_! She thought. Bella pulled out her cell phone and checked the battery. It was also low, and a little notification popped up saying that she had two percent of battery charge left.

"No! Why do I have to be so Goddamn _unlucky _today?" she yelled. With her last minute of battery, she tried to call Charlie. It would be embarrassing, but he'd have to pick her up. Right as his gruff greeting started, the phone went dead.

"Damn it!" Bella shouted as rain started pouring down. Wet, miserable, and stranded, she tried to open the truck's door, as she had gotten out to make the phone call. It was locked. She ran around the car, trying to open the other doors, but they wouldn't budge. She was locked out in the rain, away from civilization.

Emmett's POV

Alicia was alive. Emmett couldn't believe it. He had so many questions – he had missed her _so much. _Leaving her was one of his great regrets in becoming immortal. He had been talking with her inside the house, as it had started to rain. She said that she went by the name 'April' now. So, still calling her Alicia, Emmett exchanged stories of the past seventy years. He found April's vampire past intriguing, and gave her little details about his. His past anger for Bella had disappeared, and he was happy. He was reunited with his sister, and he felt as if he could sit here forever talking to her. They felt like old friends.

"So," Alicia – _April _asked. "Who was that girl in the truck?"

Laurent's POV

He couldn't believe his luck. The human girl was alone in the middle of nowhere, stranded and standing in the rain. Laurent dialled James' number on his phone and waited patiently for him to pick up.

"Yes?"

"She's alone. Empty street, no cars. Phone and car – dead. She's alone. Her vampire friend just left her – they were talking about how she had 'broken up' with her vampire boyfriend. It's perfect." Laurent explained excitedly.

"Don't do anything yet. I'm on my way."

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**Dun, dun DUN! Emmett's busy with April - Alice is mad at Bella, who will save her? Haha...find out in the next chapter! **

**That will only come by the magic of two reviews! =D**


	14. The Awakening

**Hey guys...it's 12:30 PM here and I really need to sleep. So here's the chapter, I might have made some mistakes because I'm exhausted and not thinking straight...not as long as others and really short POV snippets. **

**Please, TRY to enjoy my sleepy-writing...=D**

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Bella's POV

Something stirred in the shadows, making Bella instinctively freeze. The movement had gone as quickly as she had noticed it.

"Hello?" she called. "Is anyone there?" She shivered in the cold air. The rain had stopped, and she stood next to her truck, light jacket soaked through. Muttering to herself, Bella decided to try to walk as far as she could. Maybe she'd get lucky and Alice would turn back.

_No. _She scolded herself mentally. _She's not coming back. That's what you get when you snap at your friends. _So, shoving her cold hands in her wet pockets, Bella set off down the road. It was a highway, so there was no sidewalk, but a grassy, muddy side area that fringed a forest. She nearly tripped and fell into the mud multiple times, but she managed to keep her balance most of the journey. Halfway back to Forks, she sat for a break, panting. Bella had no idea that the walk was this long.

Reluctantly, she stood again and staggered forward. She made it to a large sign that read, _Forks, WA, 3 MILES. _She groaned. How had she gotten that far away in such a short period of time?

Only a few minutes past the sign, Bella collapsed. She was so tired from walking that she slumped over in the grass, panting. No cars were coming by, so there was no one to help her. Behind her, Bella heard a rustling. Gloomily, she caught sight of her backpack sprawled out across the grass a few paces away, in the direction she had come. She must've dropped it when she was walking.

So Bella crawled to it and unzipped it, searching the contents. Near the top she couldn't believe her luck when she found a Coke. Grinning like a fool, she pulled it out. She didn't remember packing it – but she was too thirsty to care. She twisted the cap open and pressed it to her lips, leaning her head back and drinking. It wasn't as fizzy as it should have been – too much air had gotten in. After a few sips, a bitter after-taste filled her mouth. She drank again and tasted something strange mixed in. So she spat it out quickly, trying to wipe the cold liquid off of her tongue. But she already felt something cold and unnatural coursing through her. Her stomach felt strange, and Bella let herself fall again, lying down in the wet grass. She blinked furiously, and fought against the greyness threatening to blur her vision. A groan was all she could manage.

Finally, whatever drug that was in the drink took hold and Bella passed out just after seeing a smiling face approach.

Alice's POV

Wow. Bella had _really _pissed Alice off for some reason. As a vampire, she was overreacting a little bit, but she ignored the reasonable voice in her head telling her to go talk to Bella. Bella would be fine. She could take care of herself.

That thought brought back a memory of a vision...where Bella died.

_Stupid! _Alice thought. She hadn't told _anyone _about her vision, and now Bella was heading out...alone.

_Oh no. No, no, no! _Different mental voices shrieked in her head, and she stopped running. Turning around, Alice sprinted back in the direction of where she had left Bella.

The truck was here. Bella's dead cell phone was here. But Bella wasn't here. The site frightened Alice. The truck was parked and unmoving; her cell phone was lying in the mud, no battery. She followed footsteps down the road towards Forks, and finally found a trace of Bella. Wobbly steps and what looked like a fall. A spilled Coke bottle and some tracks. But the tracks were strange...it appeared that Bella lay in the grass...and didn't walk away. It was like she had floated away...or been carried. As she picked up the Coke bottle, Alice smelled a drug in it and swore loudly. She grabbed her cell phone out from her pocket and dialled Emmett.

April's POV

Talking with Emmett was amazing. They had been talking for only an hour now, and it already felt like April had caught up with the whole seventy years she missed. The only thing he _didn't _talk about was the human girl. He avoided the question, but April noticed the pain in his eyes when she was mentioned. Halfway through a story, his mobile phone rang. His ringtone was 'Born to be Wild'. He sighed and fished it out of his pocket, peeking a look at the caller ID before answering.

"Alice?" There was speech on the other end, but April didn't bother to listen. She heard "Bella" and "kidnapped" mentioned, but it meant nothing to April.

"_What?_" Emmett nearly yelled. "_Drugged?_" He started pacing as he talked, snapping at Alice. Finally, April got fed up and walked upstairs. She entered the small bedroom that Jason stayed in, and winced when he unconsciously cried out in pain. She heard his heart significantly quicken its pace. It had nearly stopped now. April ran to Jason's side and held his hand tightly. He was nearly finished with the Change. In fact, he could probably hear her. She recognised signs of the physical change. His fairly-tanned skin had turned into deathly white, flawless skin. His freckles and human scars had faded, and April knew that beneath his still eyelids were crimson eyes.

"Oh no..." she whispered, before calling, "Emmett!" Downstairs, she heard him yelling on the phone. He didn't come. So April pulled up a chair and sat next to Jason.

"Jason. If you can hear me...I want you to know that I love you. You're the closest thing to a father I have had in a very, very long time. I know what you're going through – I know what the pain is like. I'm so, so sorry that you have to go through it, but I promise you, it'll be over soon. But...you'll have eternal life. At a high price. I'm so sorry for your pain," she hastily added, "Dad."

Emmett's POV

Emmett couldn't believe what Alice had just told him. That Bella had been kidnapped. Alice was currently trying to track her kidnapper, but they used a car so it wasn't easy. Emmett ran upstairs on April's call, hoping to be done with this quickly so he could go find Bella.

"April, this better be important – I just got a call that Bella's -" he stopped dead when he saw the scene. The man that Jasper had turned was lying unconscious on the bed, and by the looks of it he was about to wake up as a vampire. April sat by him, holding his hand and murmuring words of comfort. The man's heart rate was now beating so fast that a human wouldn't have been able to tell that it was still beating. But it was only for a second, before finally coming to a permanent stop. He opened his eyes.

Jason's POV

Everything was so clear. It was sight through new eyes. Jason could see every little layer of paint on the walls – every little beam of light reflecting in different angles on the lamp hanging above. He could see the very threads in the blankets on the bed beneath him. He could hear everything – the soft breathing of the other two people in the room, a fan on downstairs – and a faint roar from a car. But everything changed when he took his first breath. At first, it was like inhaling the room itself. He smelled the dried paint, and various other delicious smells. But as he took in that breath, he felt a fiery pain in his chest. It was like a miniature version of the burning he went through – and it _hurt. _As he looked around more, he saw a familiar face.

April. She stood before him, not breathing. Hope sparked on her face as she searched his. Jason slowly sat up. What had happened? What was that pain he had gone through? And most of all...where was he?

Jasper's POV

Jasper had already made it far past the USA's border – he had passed through Mexico and was now passing through Brazil. He barely ever stopped running. Only to feed – on animals – every two days. He was planning on running until he ran out of land, and would only stop when he found somewhere isolated from the rest of the world.

Bella's POV

Wherever Bella sat was cold and dark. She realised that she couldn't open her eyes. She instinctively lifted her hands to her face, but felt nothing blocking them.

_Maybe I'm blind, _she thought bitterly. She waved her hands in front of her eyes, but saw nothing. With a panic she realised that it was just too dark to see. She felt along the ground. Hard concrete. Her back was against a wall. She patted herself down to check for any injuries and was satisfied when she found none. After her check up, she let her fear roll in. She was in complete darkness, Bella had _no idea _where she was, and there was no one around. Or – she thought that.

"Hello?" she called, not surprised when her voice was weak.

"Hello." It was not her voice that replied.

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**o.O Hee hee. Guess who it is? Coming up:**

**More from Jasper! **

**Jason's adjusting!**

**Emmett hunting for Bella...**

**And more April & Alice drama! =D**


	15. Capture

**Now's the dramatic part of the story! Bella's kidnapped...Jason's waking up...aah! I have EVERYTHING planned out for the rest of the chapters...so enjoy!**

**Again (:S) can't think of a song for this story - as soon as I do I'll be sure to write it down! For now...suggestions would be great but hey - who needs music to read?**

**Haha...I know I do! :P**

**ENJOY!

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**Chapter Fifteen**

Bella's POV

Bella was frozen by the voice.

It had seemed to come out of nowhere, but everywhere. In the darkness her senses were confused. She smelled bleak nothingness, saw nothing, touched only hard ground, and heard only one voice other than her own.

"Who's there?" she called. Unsteadily, Bella tried to stand and threw an arm out against the wall to keep from wobbling as she rose. Still clinging to the wall, she didn't wait for an answer but started slowly taking steps. The blindness was terrifying, but Bella managed to start gradually walking forward. The voice did not reply.

In her next step, Bella's foot landed on something slightly above the ground and she yelped, jumping back. Her heavy breathing was deafening in the silence. She wrapped her arms around herself and slid down into a sitting position against the wall, eyes desperately searching for light. She opened her mouth to speak, but stopped.

_What could I say? _She thought. _If it's my kidnapper that's here with me, he or she wouldn't be ideal for helping. _Deciding to be stealthy, Bella rose again, hands not leaving the smooth wall. She tried to take silent steps, until she reached the object again. Sliding into a crouch, Bella placed her hands on it and stroked them across the whole object, blindly examining it.

It was a cube shape. Feeling the top, a few little things stuck out like buttons. Hesitantly, Bella pressed one. There was a little click, but nothing happened. So, her finger moved to the next one. She brought her finger down and nearly jumped when a tiny light came on. It wasn't bright enough to illuminate anything but itself, but it proved that Bella wasn't blind.

She sighed in relief, but stopped after a second when she realised how much noise she was making. Without checking her pulse, Bella could feel her heart hammering wildly in her chest. She was surprised that the other person in the room didn't hear it. Bella decided not to press any more buttons – after all, she had no idea what this machine was.

So she stood and continued taking slow, careful steps against the wall. After a minute, her foot collided with something hard. She stuck her hands out and felt another wall and a corner.

"You won't find a door." The same voice from before came from behind her. Bella jumped and spun around, but saw nothing. The only thing that wasn't black was the little red light from the strange machine. It was surprisingly closer that Bella had thought.

"Who's there? Where am I?" Bella yelled into the darkness. There was a little squeak, like someone was rubbing something against a microphone.

"Who's there? Where am I?" an exact repeat of what she said played back to her. Someone had recorded her voice – it was too clear to be an echo. So, in frustration, Bella became silent again. She slid down and crawled back to the red light.

"Look, whoever-you-are..." she said angrily.

"Look, whoever-you-are..." the playback seemed to come from the little machine. Bella started tapping random buttons, but the red light didn't go out.

"Messing with that won't get you out." A girl's voice. It seemed to come from above. Bella looked around, up and down, but still saw nothing. After a minute of playing back the voice in her head, she realised that...it was her own voice.

Emmett's POV

The yellow Porsche, even speeding, didn't seem to go fast enough.

Alice insisted that they take it – and that Emmett drive. She sat in the passenger seat, eyes distant. She was in the middle of a vision, and not able to drive. Emmett was driving down the highway, looking for any traces of Bella and her kidnappers. As he looked at Alice's face, he saw that her mouth was open in horror. Her eyes darted in different directions, seeing something that wasn't there. Her hand reached forward, and flattened as if she were pressing it against something flat. Her open mouth moved as if she was speaking, but no sound came out.

"Alice?" Emmett placed a gentle hand on her arm. "What are you seeing?" He murmured. Alice's head snapped in his direction, eyes still searching. Finally, she gasped and threw her arms out at the dashboard, steadying herself. She started panting, but the vacant look in her eyes disappeared.

"Alice? You okay?" Emmett asked, not focussing on the road. Alice nodded vigorously, but after a moment gasped and jumped up in her seat. She pointed to the road.

Everything happened in at once after that. The car hit the man standing in the centre of the road, and in a desperate attempt to avoid him, Emmett tried to turn. The Porsche skidded and the side hit the man, sending him flying a couple metres. Alice screamed as the whole car drove straight into a ditch on the side of the road. It flipped over on its side and the airbags flew out, blocking their air. Emmett could no longer see anything – only the white of the airbag that blew up in his face. There was a grunt beside him and some movement, and air whooshing out of one of the airbags. In the confined space, Emmett managed to stick his finger in his own and pop it. Once it had deflated, he looked to his right where Alice sat.

Except she didn't.

Her door was wide open, and her seat was empty. Her airbag lay in shreds on the dashboard, and there were scratches on the seat. Emmett opened his own door...and was confused by the angle. He seemed to open it upwards. He climbed up and out of the flipped car, jumping out. On the road there were no cars – so no humans to see his 'miraculous' survival. Any human would've died from the crash, but Emmett was fine. Not a scratch. The man he had hit wasn't there – he had disappeared. But Emmett heard quiet breathing and slowly turned around. Alice stood behind him, a look of despair crossing her face. Behind her was a man, his elbow was holding Alice in place against him, and his hand was around her neck. His other hand held both of her arms pinned behind her back. One tiny movement and he could rip her into pieces. He was obviously a vampire. As Emmett concentrated, he remembered this man as the vampire who had threatened Bella while he was hunting.

"No one move." He ordered, scuffling backwards with Alice. "Or she burns." He nodded to the car, which was now smoking. Inside there were shadows of fire. Emmett slowly and reluctantly lifted his arms in a sign of surrender, and his eyes widened in shock as more vampires came out of the trees. Two walked to...Laurent. Emmett remembered his name. Three crossed the distance to Emmett and grabbed him from different places. These vampires restrained them in a way that was fatal if they made a tiny move to kill them. Laurent stood in front of them, smiling in a way that sent a chill down Emmett's back.

"So," he murmured. "We meet again. I've heard that your human has...disappeared." he made a _poof_ motion with his hands. Emmett snarled furiously and struggled against the vampires' hold.

"I swear, if you lay a hand on her..." he left the threat for others to imagine.

"Actually, you can't do anything about it. But don't fret, that is not of my intention. You see, we have quite a game set. And you're the players." Laurent made a tiny signal with the flick of his wrist – barely noticeable. Three more vampires came out from the trees – two were strangers and the third was...

April.

She was being restrained along with the rest of them, and she fought hard. She was struggling and trying to kick them off of her. As Emmett examined her closely, he noticed a thin pink line around her elbow. She had already been injured and had probably just gotten her arm back. Once she noticed Emmett and Alice she stopped fighting and her jaw dropped.

April's POV

The only reason April had been caught was because of carelessness. She had let her guard down while taking care of Jason. She had sat with him, explaining everything about his new life. He had taken it quite well – and afterwards wanted to go hunt.

He was persistent, natural for a newborn vampire. She had found a completely secure area for him to hunt – _animals _of course – and let him loose. She hadn't been concentrating and was grabbed from behind. By vampires – too strong to break loose from. They had brought her, running, to the highway were they entered a small clearing.

Looking around, April noticed that there were many, many other vampires around. As she scanned their faces, she saw Emmett and Alice were restrained too. She stopped thrashing against the vampires' hold and her mouth dropped open. She had an excuse for getting captured.

But Alice and Emmett? They were skilled fighters, and yet they had been caught. April also noticed a crashed Porsche in a ditch behind them. Okay, so maybe they had been taken by surprise. But they should've gone down fighting. She noticed Alice's face suddenly go blank. Her eyes took on a distant look, and she seemed to be focussing on something invisible. April racked her memory for anything to explain this...

"_...Some people in our family have...abilities. Edward can read minds. Jasper can sense emotions. And Alice – she can see the future..." _Something Emmett had said to her earlier in the day. April could tell that Alice was in the middle of a vision.

Alice's POV

_Bella stands with her back to James. She wears clothes that are unusual for her – skinny jeans, knee-high strappy black boots, and a tight black tank top with a leather jacket thrown on top. Her hair has changed too – completely straight unlike her usually curly hair. She also has on sleek Aviators that hide her eyes. She moves with a familiar grace._

"_So, I see you have her." Her voice is the same...but different at the same time. It's strong and beautiful, like wind chimes. _

"_Yes," James replies. "You've seen. Now what?" he asks. Bella turns to face him, laughing slightly._

"_Francesca, let's not fool around here. I've delivered what you wanted. Now for you to keep your end of the bargain." James snaps, impatient. _

"_Of course. I'm sure the Aeternas will be very...welcoming." with that sentence Bella, or _Francesca_, steps forward and holds James' face in her hands. With another smile, she snaps her hands to the side and spins around, taking James' head with her. Out of her pocket she produces a lighter. Dropping his head, she returns to his body with inhuman speed and rips his body apart, laughing slightly. Once all the pieces are dismantled and in a pile, she turns on the lighter and drops it in the pile. Laughing, she struts around the growing fire before exiting out through a small door in the corner. In the other room, there is a scream of agony. _

Alice jumped, realising that she was screaming along with her vision. She looked around. She was being held still in the restraints of vampires, and everyone stared at her.

"Ah." The one that looked like the leader stepped towards her. "A vision? How _interesting. _Pray tell us what you saw, young one?" He had a thick English accent, and Alice recognised him as the man that Emmett had hit. He was...unharmed. Fine.

"Was it about the human that you Cullens hold so dearly? What's her name? Isabella?" he continued, smiling. Emmett snarled again beside her. Looking around, Alice saw April also in the same situation – watching her, and held back by vampires.

"Well, if no one feels like making conversation, why don't we go visit Bella?" Laurent smiled maliciously and gestured to the highway as a red convertible pulled over next to them. Alice cringed in recognition of the woman stepping out – Bella. Or rather, Francesca. Alice didn't understand what was happening – Bella was a vampire, and had killed James who had called her by Francesca. The woman walked forward, a smile on her red lips. She flipped her straight brown hair behind her shoulders and took off her sunglasses. Emmett and Alice gasped.

"Well, hello everyone." She greeted them. "It seems we have a lot to talk about. I'm Francesca." It truly wasn't Bella. It was her look-a-like, who had blazing crimson eyes.

A vampire.

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**DUNdunDUN! I gotta admit...the whole look-a-like thing wasn't my origional plan...but I threw it in! And I'll say now, it's NOT MY IDEA! I took it from Vampire Diaries, because I thought it would be an interesting twist!**

**Review!**


	16. Francesca

**Merry Christmas! It's Christmas Eve, and here's your Christmas present! Enjoy!**

**Migrane - Megan McCauley**

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Chapter Sixteen

Francesca's POV

The Cullens could be _so _interesting. Always stirring trouble among the immortals. The worst trouble they had ever gotten into was when Edward went to the pathetic Volturi, begging them to kill him. And all because he thought his _human _lover had died. After he had left her alone in the mercy of any vampires that happened to come by. Including Francesca. As an eternal being, Francesca had seen many things. But never before had she found a case where an immortal – she _hated _the modern term of 'vampire' – and a human shared the same appearance. And a human in such a situation! Falling in love with all the Cullen sons.

_Ah, well. _Francesca thought. _After my little game they'll see how pointless it is to love a vermin. _

She stood for a moment, letting the captives take in her appearance.

"Well, hello everyone." Francesca's mouth pulled into a grin as she saw the looks of surprise on the Cullens' faces. Walking slowly, she passed the three vampires held captive. She stopped at each one.

"Alice Cullen. Never knew of your human life, but you found Jasper Hale as an immortal and joined the Olympic Coven. You have a gift of seeing the future." Francesca nodded and moved on.

"Emmett Cullen. Changed in 1935 by Carlisle Cullen. Your mate _used _to be Rosalie Cullen – or does she now go by Rosalie Hale? I see you've left her for Isabella Swan." She kept smiling at their horror. Francesca knew _everything _about this bunch. Taking a few more steps forward, she frowned at the third vampire.

"And who might this be?" she placed a finger on the girl's chin and lifted it. She looked like she had been blessed – Francesca's term for bitten – at a young age. About fifteen? As she concentrated more, a memory rushed back of this girl.

"Ah," she sighed. "Now I remember. Alicia McCarthy. Younger sister of Emmett – formerly – McCarthy. I didn't know you'd been blessed. Well, congratulations on you're reuniting with your brother." Alicia leaned her head down and spat at Francesca, who managed to dance out of the way.

"No, no, young one. That won't get you anywhere." She purred, twirling back to the centre of their circle.

"Laurent," she whispered, almost inaudibly. He flashed to her side.

"Why is Alicia here?" it was more of a quiet snap at him, and Laurent's face fell for a second.

"Recent..._research_, has shown me that before they were Changed -" he started.

"_Blessed_." Francesca corrected him.

"Right. Before they were _blessed_," he paused to look at her. "They had a very close relationship. In fact, on what I observed earlier today, they still do." Francesca nodded. Love for others was the key connection to all the players in this game. She smiled again and walked back to Alice. She stood staring at her for a minute, before turning to face the vampires on her side.

"Okay, boys. Round them up. All in different cars, to the Cave." The Cave wasn't a real cave – but it was the name of the underground facility they were going to.

Bella's POV

"_HEY_!" Bella screamed. "_I know you're there! Let me out of here!_" She had been sitting in this darkness for what could've been hours or years. All she knew was that she was _starving _and needed to get out of there. She had walked around the whole room three times, tracing her hands along the wall blindly. She found no doors. After that she had crawled along the floor, still not finding a door. That meant the door had to be above her. The only things that were in the room were her and a tiny speaker that let out the voice of a stranger that was probably watching her through some little camera on the ceiling. She was so hungry and tired from slamming her fists against the walls. Now she was slumped in a corner, breathing slowly and resting. She couldn't see, but knew that her fist was bruised.

A creaking noise filled the room, making Bella freeze. Her head whipped around the room, looking for the source of the noise. The noise repeated itself after a small _thud. _It sounded as if someone had fallen from the ceiling and landed on their feet. Bella held her breath and pressed herself harder against the wall. She didn't dare make a noise.

"Tired of yelling, huh?" her own – modified – voice spoke again. Bella still couldn't get over the shock of it. By 'modified' she meant that this copy of her voice sounded...better in ways. It was smooth and beautiful, and it reminded Bella of wind chimes. But it was still Bella's.

"Aw, our little screamer is too scared to talk." Something touched Bella's cheek, and she jumped, shoving herself backwards. She couldn't retreat any further, and finally let out her breath.

"Surprised? Can you tell so quickly that we are...the same?" her voice asked.

"The same?" Bella built up the nerve to talk. Her replying voice was somehow closer.

"Yes. I'm shocked you haven't caught on that our voices are the same, if not appearances." She paused. "But of course, you can't see in here, can you? How about we bring some light to the matter?" Bella could almost _hear _the grin in her words. Not understanding what she was saying, she didn't have time to shield her eyes from the burst of light that infiltrated them. Someone had flicked a switch, and a white light engulfed the room, blinding Bella. Her hands flew up to her eyes, covering them. She tucked her head in her knees and squeezed her eyes shut before slowly opening them. Her eyes adjusted faster than she expected, and she looked around the bright room. The first thing she noticed was: _White. _The walls were all perfectly white, with no marks or scratches. It turned out Bella's wall-beating hadn't had any effect on the paint. She was right about no doors. The little machine was small and white, with black buttons. As she looked up, she noticed a lot of hanging white lights illuminated the room. They cleared in a small space where a little trap-door was fitted into the ceiling. But she looked over these small details quickly – what she _really _noticed was the girl standing in the middle of the room.

Her dark clothing stood out among the whiteness. Black, strappy boots and dark blue jeans. A charcoal blouse was beneath an unzipped black leather jacket. As Bella's eyes continued up, she saw straight, brunette hair hanging down over her shoulders. But her face was the most shocking. At first, Bella had to blink to make sure she was seeing correctly. But there it was.

She was looking at herself.

Not herself exactly – but what looked like her twin. Her features were slightly different, she had deathly pale skin and her face was beautiful, only unlike Bella's in certain places. But anyone that glanced once could see that she was identical to Bella. Above all, her eyes stood out. They blazed a magnificent crimson against her pale face. She was truly terrifying...and yet she smiled darkly at Bella. She made no movement and didn't speak, but waited for Bella to talk first.

"I...h-how do we...how do we l-look the s-same?" she stuttered, standing unsteadily. The other Bella folded her arms across her chest.

"Now _that's _a mystery." She shrugged lightly. "We're probably distantly related – genetics are always doing weird things."

"I...w-where am I?" Bella stammered, eyes circling back to the trap door on the ceiling.

"Oh, an interesting question. You were out long enough for us to travel to nearly anywhere in the world – with the right means of transportation. Where do you _think _you are?" the vampire Bella asked.

"I-I don't know. Who are y-you? And w-what do you w-want?" Bella was still too shocked to manage a steady sentence.

"_So _many questions. Not enough answers. Ah, might as well tell you. It's not like you'll be leaving anytime soon. My name is..." she paused for dramatic effect. "Francesca Antoinette. An immortal since...sometime in the B.C.'s. I don't remember exactly. Time flies when you have infinite of it. I've been gathering information on you and the Cullens for a few years now – I find their lifestyle intriguing, also the fact that they keep you as more than a pet. And of course, I've studied our family trees. Trying to find a relation. Anyway, to more important points...I really don't want much. Just to have some fun. And I find that that comes most easily by taking it from others. Games. Level one is about to start..." with that and a devilish grin, Francesca twirled away and leapt up to the trap door.

In a time shorter than a second, she was gone. Thankfully, the lights stayed on. Bella tried to reach the trap door, but it was too high for her reach. So instead, she staggered backward and slid down the wall, into a relative sitting position.

_I'll die here. _She thought miserably. _She'll kill me. _There was no reason that a vampire like Francesca would have any reason for keeping Bella alive. She leaned her head into her knees and began to sob. She would never get to tell Emmett that she loved him. That she only ended their relationship to end her pain. She would never kiss him again...never feel his cold touch again. Tears flooded her eyes.

This was how Bella Swan would die.

Jason's POV

So that was the Blessing.

Jason was told that when he became an immortal, as it was constantly promised to him, it would be amazing. Speed, strength, eternal youth..._immortality. _But he had been bitten by accident, not at all what he had agreed with Francesca. But that meant that Jason didn't owe her...and he was free.

The whole time – he had been stupid enough to believe that April was human. He had always thought that she never changed – but never pursued his thoughts. He remembered something that Francesca had told him about animal blood...how it diluted a vampire's eyes and made them golden. April's eyes were gold. Did that mean she didn't kill humans? Shame on her. For not accepting what she was. Jason had known about vampires nearly all his life – working for one named Francesca.

She had always promised him immortality – as long as he served her. He did so, always hoping that his 'Blessing', as she called it, would come faster. But it never came. This way, this _accident, _was much easier. Now he was strong enough to fulfil his purpose for wanting to become a vampire.

To kill Francesca.

Jason's new speed was amazing. He could reach places metres away in a millisecond – and he never got tired. Currently, he was running through the forest on the side of the highway, following nothing in particular. Francesca would contact Jason if she needed – she definitely had the resources to find him. But he thought of this as...a vacation. A little immortality-trial.

Jasper's POV

Jasper could sense something wrong as he slowed to a walk through the trees. The shadows seemed to shift around him.

He barely had a moment's warning when the vampires attacked.

They were nearly too much for Jasper to handle at first – he managed to get the first one off of him. About nine of them had melted out of the shadows and charged him – forming a circle. One had lunged and tried to wrap his arms around Jasper. Obviously an untrained newborn. Jasper had experience with this sort of thing and tossed the vampire aside after a few seconds. But they kept coming. Attacking in bigger groups, the nine of them managed to take Jasper down. They got their arms around his, one holding each arm and another with a hand around his neck. A fatal vampire position. The other six formed a circle around them, escorting the many vampires to the large truck ahead.

"Gotcha." One of the vampires whispered in Jasper's direction. Looking up, **Jasper noticed that he was wearing a Santa hat. **

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**Again - Merry Christmas! I snuck a little Christmas reference in Jasper's POV. Hope you guys have a great xmas - don't waste it ALL reading though, spend some time with family! Another chapter should roll in tommorow - I'm trying to keep up this day-to-day thing. :)**


	17. The Puppet Master

**It's Christmas morning - and here's your present: A CHAPTER! YAAY!****

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Chapter Seventeen

**April's POV**

Emmett and Alice went quietly.

April, however, not knowing who Bella was, fought to get away from the vampires forcing them into three different cars.

"April!" Emmett finally yelled. Her gaze flicked to his for a second, but she didn't stop thrashing against the vampires' hold.

"Alicia, _please. _They have Bella." His voice cracked when he said her name, and pain broke through his face. April saw that Bella was important to him...but she was just a human. Humans mattered, sure. But why should three vampires have to die to save her? Desperately, April looked over at Alice. But she showed the same pleading face – begging her not to do anything stupid. After April's moment of hesitation, she was thrown into a black minivan behind her. Three men – vampires – entered with her, watching her carefully. Furiously, April swore loudly and slumped back against the wall of the van.

**Emmett's POV**

As soon as they told him they had Bella, Emmett didn't fight. He knew that if he tried to escape they'd probably kill her. He was now sitting in the back of a minivan with Alice and quite a few other people. Everyone's eyes were on them – watching their every move. Alice didn't breathe, but sat and watched. Her face was blank, but not distant like her vision-face. After a few seconds of sitting, the van started moving. It was a very quiet car – well, to human ears.

Finally, Alice spoke up.

"Prove it." Her voice wasn't squeaky and cheerful as it usually was. It was still her voice, but slightly lower and more serious.

"Prove _what_?" one of the vampires asked. It was a man, frozen at his mid-thirties. He was bald and wore the same black clothes as everyone else.

"That you have Bella." Alice snapped, looking up at him. A few people laughed in the small space, and something was passed between them. When it finally reached Alice and Emmett, he was first to grab it. It was a small screen with some sort of film from a camera playing. It looked like it was live. It showed a small room – white walls and floor. Inside were a little white speaker and a girl, lying crumpled in the corner. As Emmett concentrated, he saw shiny large, brown eyes looking up at the camera. It was Bella.

Emmett let a vicious snarl erupt from his throat and jumped up, tossing the screen at the van wall – it flew through, making a large hole. Everyone acted at once, Alice jumped up to help Emmett, and so did the other vampires. But their goal wasn't to help – it was to throw themselves at Emmett and restrain him. He was larger and more skilled, but they were stronger as they drank human blood. Emmett fought against them, and saw Alice starting to fight as well.

It was all in a blur, people flying everywhere – even a couple dismantled body parts slamming into the walls. Emmett used their inexperience to his advantage, feinting in one direction but going the other. These vampires stuck together – they were used to working in a team. The space they fought in was tiny, but during their brawl the chairs had been knocked flat. The driver didn't stop. The windows were all blacked out, so Emmett and Alice had no idea where they were going.

Alice was also very skilled – seeing their moves before they thought of them. After five minutes, three out of six of the vampires were in pieces strewn across the van. The other three held their ground and waited for the attack, but instead of doing so, Emmett and Alice, after a nod of communication, ripped open the back emergency door and jumped out of the speeding van.

**April's POV**

April heard a huge crash somewhere outside of the van and horrible screeches. There were some ripping noises and what sounded like bending metal. A few snarls and growls, and finally a crashing sound. The three vampires with April stood –which was hard with the low ceiling. They muttered words in what sounded like Russian, before one of them opened the door. A burst of wind hit April – the wan vas still moving. The vampire leaned out and looked around, and his eyes widened at something ahead. He spoke again in Russian and turned to face April. His eyes narrowed as he leapt out the open door. The second vampire shut the door behind him and returned to his seat in front of April.

**Francesca's POV**

Francesca had a gift.

She knew that Alice Cullen did as well – but she only had future seeing. It was nice if you wanted to see the outcome of something, but would never help in combat. Francesca's gift was probably the strongest. She could mentally control someone's mind – make them do anything she wanted. This also gave her the power of telekinesis; she could move things, even people, with her mind. Her powers were much more vast – Francesca was able to hurt vampires with her mind as well, just as a girl in the Volturi could.

Janine, was her name? Jane? Francesca couldn't care enough to remember. As one of the first vampires, she could also Shadow-Travel. It was a gift bestowed on only the original vampires. She could become invisible, in a way, and teleport using shadows and darkness. It came in handy for fleeing – which wasn't something she usually did.

Now, Francesca saw that the sun was setting. Darkness crept across the large valley. She stood at the entrance to The Cave, a dark tunnel with two massive steel doors at the bottom. They lead into a dark series of rooms - in one Bella Swan was being held. As shadows enveloped the valley, Francesca could now Shadow-Travel. She stepped out of the Cave entrance and let herself disappear into the darkness.

She focussed on a destination and let herself fade away...for only a second. She materialized two miles away, at the entrance to the valley. Two black vans entered, both with the familiar little symbol of the Aeternas strewn across the front of them. The first one was badly damaged and battered – a few holes in the walls and some serious dents. As it passed, Francesca noticed that the back doors were hanging open; one of them had nearly fallen off.

She growled as she noticed that no one was in it, and her red-tinted gaze shifted to the next van – which was in perfect condition. No holes, dents, or open doors. Francesca smiled slightly – at least _half _of her plan had gone well. So, feeling grumpy, she zoomed over to the first van and swung open the driver's door as the van still moved. Francesca reached in and grabbed the vampire driver by his neck, lifting him out. He looked down at her, fear in his eyes. She looked directly into his eyes and used her gift to cause him pain – the same pain from the Change.

Francesca dropped him and watched as he writhed in agony on the ground. After a minute, she grew tired and leaned down to press her hand on his shoulder. Her eyes changed from crimson to violet, and she waited a few seconds for the vampire to die. He turned into dust before her, leaving this world completely. Francesca's eyes changed back to red, and she grinned before using telekinesis to lift the van off of the road, making space for the next. It pulled over next to her. The driver rolled down his window and leaned out.

"We'll need to continue on foot from here – the path up to the Cave is unstable for the van. Elliot got out after the other two" – he jerked his chin up to the damaged van – "got away. He went after them. Could you take this one?" his voice hinted at a Russian accent, but only slightly. Francesca agreed and told him to go on ahead to the Cave. She opened the van's door and entered to find Alicia McCarthy sitting on one of the chairs.

"You know," Francesca folded her arms across her chest. "Alice and Emmett escaped. Even with the knowledge that I can kill Bella at _any _time. But you sit here obediently, and _don't _escape. What does Bella mean to you that you'd sacrifice yourself for her?" Alicia – or _April _rather – was silent. Francesca silently exited the van and pressed a hand to the side of it. Her eyes shifted again to a mysterious violet and the van disintegrated. Alicia stood in the middle of a pile of dust where the van was, eyes wide. Seeing Francesca's point, she was quick to speak.

"Nothing! This is for Emmett – he loves Bella. I...I can't hurt him by letting her die." She insisted. Francesca's head tilted to the left, and she approached Alicia again. Touching her arm, she let them both evaporate into shadows.

**April's POV**

Was this teleportation?

April had no idea what was happening. She could see everything around her for a second, but as soon as Francesca touched her everything changed. She seemed to evaporate into the air – everything was dark as she felt herself _whoosh _forward. After only one second, it all stopped. She was standing in some sort of cave. April staggered in dizziness – something she hadn't experienced as a vampire.

"Wh..." April tried to speak, but little sound came out before she was unable to talk. Francesca was looking at her in a strange way – and her eyes had changed from crimson to purple. April tried to speak again, but she was unable to force any sound out. She realised with a shock that Francesca was doing this. But the older vampire's eyes shifted back to normal and she laughed. Suddenly, April found herself walking forward, across the small space. She tried to stop, but felt control of her body slip. She felt like a puppet as words came out of her mouth that she didn't speak. Finally, she got one of her own words out.

"_Stop_!" she yelled. After that, she stopped walking. Everything was peaceful for a moment and April sighed in relief – too soon. She was filled with an excruciating pain – as if she was being burned alive. It reminded her of the pain that she had gone through in the Change, and she screamed in agony.

"Please – stop!" she screeched. The pain continued and April felt herself moving.

The pain stopped, but was replaced by a horrible blood lust. April was _sure _she had hunted the other night...apparently not. She tried to look around the room – but she was frozen in place. In front of her, she noticed a human. Her thirst was fiery in her throat, and she tried to jump up and attack the girl, but she was paralyzed. She could only watch as the girl jumped back in fright. April could smell the warm blood pounding through her veins...but she recognised the face. It was Francesca. But instead of blazing red eyes, they were brown...her hair was curly and she wore different clothes. Francesca was human?

Finally, the invisible restraints lifted, and April lunged for the girl's throat.

**Bella's POV**

The vampire had just _appeared _in front of Bella.

She jumped and looked at the girl. Her eyes were golden like the Cullens', and her skin was as pale as theirs. She glared at Bella with a fierce look of hunger in her eyes. They weren't black though – so how could she be so thirsty? The vampire growled but didn't move. She was like a statue.

Bella couldn't think of anything to say, she just sat and stared. Finally, with a snarl, the vampire jumped up. In a blur, she leapt at Bella. Bella screamed as she was pinned down – there was no way she could fight a vampire. She closed her eyes as she waited for the bite that would end her.

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**Merry Christmas! Here's some thoughts I had on this one...**

**Francesca - Stop messing with April!**

**April - NOO!**

**Emmett & Alice - Where'd you go? Don't let Bella die!**

**Carlisle & Esme - Where the HECK are you? You're missing all the action!**

**Jasper, Rosalie & Edward - Tut tut. Not cool enough to be in this chapter. **

**Bella - ...Yeah I'm not giving anything away. **


	18. Torment

**Hey guys - hope you've been enjoying your holidays! Be warned...this chapter is filled with drama!**

**I can officially say now that there WILL be a sequel, and it's planned out! I'm not giving ANYTHING away!**

**Reverie - Megan McCauley. (_Mild language ahead!) _**

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**Chapter Eighteen**

Emmett's POV

Alice and Emmett hadn't gone far from the van.

They had only strayed back to the thick forests on the left of the highway. On the right huge mountains ringed an unseen valley – a nature reserve. They followed closely behind the van they had broken out of, careful to avoid their pursuer from the other vehicle. Alice had wanted to go back and get help, but Emmett had stubbornly insisted that there was no time. Finally, the two black vans slowed and pulled off the road onto a thin dirt path before edging underneath a huge boulder to get through to the valley. Occasionally, they had to stop to avoid rocks. These vans weren't built for this kind of terrain.

Alice and Emmett had to hide as far back as possible when they noticed another vampire coming. They had gone far enough that they couldn't see what was happening, but heard the agonising cries of pain. Darkness had fallen across the lands, and they crept back over the hills to find debris from the vans strewn across the place they once sat. Piles of grey dust formed in odd places, and a severed arm rolled across the ruins of one of the black vans.

Tire marks showed that the other had driven away. Emmett sped down the hill and skidded to a stop by the dust. He soundlessly scooped a few grains on his finger and brought it close to his nose, smelling it. It was had a strong, sweet scent that left him slightly disoriented. But something familiar rang in the scent of this powder...it was a unique smell, but held the signature trace of vampires. These scents were too faint for a human's senses, but strong for the amplified senses of a vampire.

Emmett felt Alice tense next to him and whirled around to look at her. She was frozen in place, eyes staring off into space. Her pupils seemed to dart around her golden eyes, seeing what no one else could. Her face was overcome with a mask of complete terror; she let out a bloodcurdling scream and dropped to her knees, clawing at her head.

"Alice!" Emmett kneeled next to her, not knowing what to do. Finally, she looked up at him with distressed eyes. She was shaking wildly, and her mouth shaped into a small _O _before she stood, trembling.

"I'm...sorry...I can't..." she mumbled. Alice's whole body jerked down, her hair falling in her face. She screamed again, it was a terrifying, spine-chilling screech that filled the valley and echoed, making Emmett jump. The scream cut off suddenly with a moan of pain and finally silence.

"...Alice?" he whispered. In a flash, he was pinned down on the ground by Alice, who snarled above him.

"Alice! What are you doing? Get off!" Emmett bucked her off, but she had already moved in front of him, a vicious glare extending across her small, pixie-like face. She didn't back off from the fight, but instead lunged at Emmett skilfully, trying to swipe his neck while efficiently dodging his large hands.

"___Alice_!" he yelled again. He didn't want to hurt Alice, but she wasn't stopping. Emmett tried to only use defensive techniques and not go on the offensive, but it was his nature to strike out. Behind him, he heard familiar laughter. For a moment, he thought Bella was behind him, but the laugh had a cruelty and beauty to it that didn't match hers. Emmett knew that it was Francesca's, but he didn't dare turn his back on Alice while she was in this state.  
"Stop!" he growled at Francesca. "Whatever you're doing, stop!" The spiteful chuckle continued, and so did Alice's blind rage.

Their fight was a blur, Emmett relying on brute strength and Alice using speed and her own techniques to take her opponent down. Finally, Emmett got his arms on hers and held Alice in place. She thrashed and struggled, but his force kept her still. He didn't have to turn, Francesca walked around to face Emmett, clapping in sync with her slow steps. She stopped in front of him and her arms dropped to fold across her chest. Her face still donned a sickly sweet smirk.

"You bitch!" Emmett yelled, careful not to lose his hold on the growling and thrashing Alice.

"Stop!" he shouted at Francesca again. Emmett had to admit that she was beautiful. After all, she was Bella's...twin? Her face twisted into a scowl, and her eyes seemed to blaze redder.

"I'd choose my words a little more carefully, you twit." She snapped. "Seeing as I'm the one that has Bella, you're in no position to be angering me." Emmett's glare stopped at the mention of Bella, and in the second that he faltered Alice got free. She leapt forward and flipped mid-air, facing Emmett again. Francesca snapped her small fingers and little Alice fell on the ground, slumping over. Her head rolled to look up, and at the sight of Francesca she leapt up, standing straight. She saw Emmett and her face twisted in an apologetic frown.

"Emmett, I'm so sorry, she -"

"It's okay. I know." Emmett cut Alice off. He turned to face Francesca again, who had not regained her smirk.

"Where's Bella?" he demanded.

Here. Francesca's voice was in his head – as if she had transmitted a mental message. She probably had, Emmett thought. Something pale appeared out of the shadows to her right, no, someone. Bella was in the same clothes as the previous day, and she glanced around in fear. She was shivering from the cold outdoor air, but as she looked up at Francesca Emmett was sure that it was in fear.

"Bella!" Emmett cried, running towards her. As soon as he reached within a metre of her she disappeared, eyes wide.

"Emmett?" Bella croaked. She was behind him suddenly, holding her head and staggering as if she was dizzy. As soon as he faced her, she vanished into the darkness again and reappeared about ten metres away.

This continued for only five minutes, whenever Emmett got close to Bella she would unintentionally teleport somewhere else.

"Stop!" she finally cried, looking up at Francesca. The vampire stifled a laugh as Bella moved again. Her transportations became more frequent that in the split seconds that she was visible, Emmett saw her kneeling and holding her head. Her face was twisted in pain. He lunged at Francesca, seeing red.

She dodged his every move and countered his attacks easily, all whilst smirking maliciously and silently. Finally, she seemed to get bored. She threw out a hand as Emmett charged for his next attack, and he instantaneously froze and fell to the floor, jerking in unnatural angles. He groaned in agony as he was powerless against the unseen torture he was going through.

"Stop!" Bella shrieked, her voice echoing in the silence. But Francesca didn't stop the pain.

"Please!" Bella screamed again. "Don't hurt him!" Emmett was still writhing in agony on the ground, letting out piercing howls of pain.

Bella's POV

During the action, Bella had momentary flashbacks of when she had gone to the Volturi to save Edward. Jane had put Edward through the same pain. There had been nothing she could do about his torture – even though it was short, she felt helpless that he was going through such pain.

No, Bella thought defiantly. This time, I will help. Still feeling weak and disoriented from the torturous teleporting, Bella managed to get up, tears flooding from her eyes. She cast a quick look at Emmett – using telekinesis; Francesca had lifted him off the ground and was now absorbed in watching him scream in pain whilst airborne. She didn't even noticed Bella stagger towards her. Halfway there, she tripped on something hard and sharp.

It grazed her skin, but didn't draw blood. She rolled over on the ground quickly and grabbed the object – a rock with a sharp edge. Looking around one last time, Bella noticed Alice frozen a couple metres away from Emmett. Her eyes were looking around helplessly while her body was stuck in place; standing still and watching her brother suffer.

Francesca had messed with enough people. Bella remembered a story told to her by Billy Black once. After the Cullens had left, Jacob had been there for her, bringing her to the Reservation for all sorts of things – bonfires, council meetings, and a welcoming meeting for some new wolves. During that meeting, Billy had told everyone the story of the first wolves.

He had mentioned the Third Wife, and how she had sacrificed herself as a distraction for her husband to kill the 'Cold One'. Feeling a surge of courage, Bella stood up, still gripping the rock. Shuddering, she pressed it to her wrist and dug it in as hard as she could. With a little gasp, she pulled upward and let it pierce her skin.

Crimson blood oozed from the long cut, a whole trail slid down her hand and dripped slightly on the ground. Francesca's head snapped to her direction, her smile wiped right off. Emmett yelled as he fell to the ground with a thud, but was back up in less than a second.

They all ran in the same direction – Francesca to Bella and Emmett to Francesca. Alice was also free from the Power and ran to Bella, not because of bloodlust, but to protect her. Emmett and Alice never made it to her in time, and she saw them freeze as Francesca drew a cold, hard finger gently across Bella's throat. She didn't go for her bleeding wrist, but instead taunted the Cullen vampires by letting it drip slowly. Bella swallowed down sobs and met Emmett's gaze.

"Stubborn little girl," Francesca murmured, resting her head on Bella's shoulder. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Francesca smirk.

"Thought you could save your boyfriend by distracting me." Francesca sighed and pulled back, keeping a hand on Bella's quivering shoulder.

"A stupid move. You have no idea how old and powerful I am – such little things like smell don't affect me anymore. Did you know, that actually, once Immortals reach a certain age, if they have a normal blood diet, are stronger than newborns. They have consumed so much blood over the centuries, small amounts staying in their system which build up until it is no longer necessary for the Immortal to feed. But of course, they still do." Francesca shrugged lightly before continuing.

"New Powers awaken inside of them, and if you're ever unfortunate to come across one of the Originals like me, you'll find that their Powers are usually very dangerous." Francesca lifted Bella's right arm up, and placed her little finger against it.

"With a tiny amount of pressure," she said. "I could pierce Bella's skin and break her arm. With a single finger."

**(CHANGE THE SONG - NOW! NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW! _Love is Worth the Fall - O.A.R. _If you don't change the song I'll eat you alive. No joke!)**

"With a little more pressure," she continued. "I could snap her whole arm off. Clean through the skin, muscles, and bones." Bella's breath caught in a gasp and she shook even harder. There was a tiny pinching feeling on her arm, and pain shot through it. Emmett snarled, a wild noise, and some swearing broke through as his snarl ripped through the quiet night air.

Bella cried out as the final surge of pain finally hit her, and clutched her arm to her chest, sobbing. Before she would run away, Francesca grabbed her by her long, chocolate brown hair and pulled her backwards. Bella cried out in pain. Emmett charged forward, catching Francesca off guard. As soon as he reached her, Alice cried for him to stop, but Francesca dropped Bella and let her sink to the floor. As he approached, she grabbed his head with her bare hands and –

Bella screamed and looked away as she heard an ear-splitting snap tear through the midnight air. She let herself crumple to the floor, still clutching her arm, and cried out as she saw something round and white fall and bounce on the ground. It rolled over to her, and Bella saw Emmett's frozen face on his severed head.

From that point, everything was unclear. Bella was screaming and crying at the same time, Alice was kneeling next to her, crying as well, and Francesca had disappeared. A glint of orange caught her eye, and Bella's eyes searched the area. Everything was blurry from the tears in her eyes, but she just noticed some sort of fire spreading across the grass. She didn't care. She didn't move. If Emmett was dead, Bella would die too. Burned alive.

She barely noticed Alice yelling, and before she knew it she was being carried away from Emmett.

"No!" she shrieked, struggling. "We can't leave him! No!" Bella heard Alice's sobs, but she reluctantly dropped Bella in the grass with a thud. She screamed when she landed on her broken arm, but Alice was gone. A moment later, Bella saw her emerge from the flames carrying a body and a strange, circular object...she looked away when she realised what they were.

"Come on," Alice whispered, suddenly at her side. "We have to leave. We have to leave." She comforted Bella as she lifted her up off the ground. She seemed to be carrying everyone – dead and alive.

Emmett's POV

Death was painful.

He felt cold hands lock his head in place, and cast one last glace at Bella.

"I love you." He mouthed. Her face cracked in pain – she had heard. That was all that mattered, Bella knew that Emmett loved her. With a simple twist of someone's hands, he felt a horrible burning at his neck, and felt everything inside him tear. His eyes widened and he knew he wore a face of pain. This was his end. Time seemed to slow, and he felt images fly past him. His life. His memories. Everything flew through his eyes at that one moment.

_His childhood. His two brothers Mathew and Stephen. Being forced by his father to work on the railroads while his sister Alicia stayed at home. _

_Walking in the forest – being attacked by a bear. Rosalie finding him. Like an angel, she found him and brought him to Carlisle._

_The pain of the Change. Waking up to Rosalie's face. Their love that was thought to be eternal. Life with the Cullens for only a year, before he left to Africa with his true love, Rosalie. Returning to an unchanging family. Meeting Bella...and falling in love. _

_Mistakes that he had made in his relationship with Bella. Every kiss, every touch. Their fights, but their love that didn't fail. Bella's kidnapping. Previous events._

___He saw every second of his life, in one second of real life. He watched from third-person view of his death. His head snapping clean off..._

Emmett let himself be sucked into darkness. He knew that he was going to Hell, and accepted it.

Emmett let himself die.

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**:'( I will not give away _ANYTHING_ about Emmett. Well...I'll probably blurt it out to my brother...who'll just say piss off or something. =D Whatever. Guys...don't cry. The sequel will be sadder.**

**And that's all I'm saying. ;'')**


	19. Guilt

**Okay guys, don't panic! It's not over yet...****

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Chapter Nineteen

Francesca's POV

Emmett's death had ruined _everything. _

Francesca had plans for him and his family – plans that were shattered as soon as his head fell off of his body. In frustration, she had fled, hastily leaving a lit match in the grass to hopefully burn Emmett's body. Francesca didn't stick around to watch, but instead made her way through the fading shadows and up to the Cave. By now, Jasper Cullen should have arrived. But examining the scene, Francesca saw that something had gone wrong. Oddly shaped white rocks lay strewn across the floor, some parts of the rock wall were crumbling, and some had little crevices that stretched a few metres. White scratches adorned the cave, ceiling, floor and walls.

Francesca didn't need to look closer to know that the white rocks were dismembered body parts. After millenniums of seeing this, she didn't find it gruesome anymore.

Further down, the huge steel doors had collapsed – they were lying motionless on the cold, hard ground, dented and ripped to near shreds. Inside looked untouched, aside from a couple specks of nearly unnoticeable dust on the white floor.

Francesca walked slowly down the bright white hallway, examining the doors as she passed. She sent out a mental probing wave to search for other vampires, but she found nothing. Francesca took a familiar turn and silently entered a small room. There was no light, and so she produced a match box from her pocket. The tiny scraping of the box as it opened was thunderous in the silence and echoed off the walls. Hands moving in a blur, she lit a match quickly and returned the little box to her pocket.

The tiny flame only illuminated a miniature space around itself, but it was enough to help Francesca see everything in the room. She approached the little trap door on the ground and reached her hand over to unlock it. But the titanium locks were already open, and the door sat at a disturbed angle. Francesca's eyes narrowed and she lifted the door open. Inside she saw the lights were on, but there was no one inside.

Alicia had escaped.

April's POV

The moment they escaped the valley, April threw herself into Jason's arm in a cold embrace. He comforted her quietly as she cried into his shoulder.

Jason had come from nowhere – opened the trap door from above and peered in. April, at that moment, couldn't move. She was frozen by Francesca's dark powers. Her bloodlust had left her, and after a sickening scream from outside, her movement returned to her. April followed Jason outside, not asking about the charred body parts scattered around the cave entrance. As they had taken a longer route around the valley, April noticed a fire raging, and with her enhanced sight she saw movement next to it. Alice, Emmett, Francesca and a human stood near the growing fire. Survival instincts kicked in and April unwillingly left them to their fate in the valley.

Now, she pulled back from Jason's chilling embrace and faced him.

"Thank you." She whispered. He nodded.

"It's fine. I couldn't leave you with Fran– that vampire." He stopped what he was going to say – Francesca.

"How do you know her?" April demanded, starting to walk through the trees. Jason followed quickly behind.

"I don't." His lie was obvious. Even as a human he had never been good at lying – his altered state didn't help that.

"Oh come on, Jason, you _know _how bad you are at lying. Just tell me." April insisted, looking back at him. His eyes quickly averted her gaze and dropped to the floor. They quickened their pace.

"I..." he sighed in defeat. "Yes. I know her. But I can't tell you...right now. Later." His tone suggested finality, and so April didn't pursue the subject any longer. After a couple minutes of silence, their walk slowed. She hung back to walk beside Jason.

"Who helped you? Get in, I mean. You're a new vampire, and I'm sure you haven't been trained to fight that quickly." April didn't look at Jason, but instead focussed on the path ahead of her. He paused a moment before answering.

"Uh...April, don't get mad...but it was Jasper. Jasper Cullen, the one who -"

"Changed you." April finished in a grim tone.

"He was captured as well – but he got out. He found me as I reached the valley, and stopped to tell me not to go this way. I told him that you were in there. I...caught your scent. After a little while, he decided to help me." Jason paused.

"He said that he was going after someone in there too." He glanced at April, wondering if she knew, probably.

"Alice. Alice and...Emmett!" She breathed. Her eyes suddenly widened. "Alice and Emmett!" she repeated. April came to a halt, causing Jason to stop, too.

"What is it?"

"We have to help Alice! She was with Francesca and...Oh God. How could I have left them?" without waiting for a response from Jason, she turned and dashed off back in the direction of the valley.

"April!" he called. "April, wait!" With his newborn-vampire speed, Jason was able to catch up with her easily. He grabbed her shoulder and pulled her to a halt.

"April, you can't go back there." His tone was low and serene. "They'll kill you." April shrugged off him his hand and shook her head.

"No. I _have _to help Emmett!" she yelled.

"Why is this boy so important to you?" Jason snapped, following April as she started to leave. She came to a stop and turned on him.

"Because, _Jason, _he's my _brother_!" April turned again and ran for the valley, leaving Jason behind with a wide open mouth.

The last thing she heard before she entered the valley was Emmett's scream.

Alice's POV

Alice grieved over Emmett's death, but she held her emotions inside. Right now, she needed to concentrate. Carrying Bella _and _Emmett's body was tough – not because they were heavy. That wasn't a problem. Her arms were short, and so it was near impossible to support both bodies.

With her vampire balance, Alice was able to carry them both without letting them touch. Bella, after a long fit of screaming, had reduced her noise to pitiful sobs. Alice felt the need to comfort her, but ignored it, picking up her pace as she bounded to the valley's exit. The fire was now far behind her, but Alice took no chances that Francesca might come back. As she approached the gap between the colossal boulders, something white flashed up to her. Faster than it, Alice dropped Emmett and Bella and leapt into a protective stance in front of the human. When she saw the face of the vampire approaching, she gasped and ran into his arms.  
"Jasper!" she whispered into his ear, hugging him tighter.

"Alice," he breathed. "I'm so sorry. I – I lost control and –" Alice cut him off by pulling back and placing a small finger on his fast-moving lips.

"Shh." She murmured. "It's okay. I know." Jasper looked over her shoulder and caught sight of the scene. The raging flames in the far background, Bella lying crumpled on the floor, sobbing miserably. And Emmett. Headless and unmoving. His eyes widened slowly and he walked past Alice, crouching next to Emmett. He placed a hand on his chest and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. When his eyes opened again, he stood and walked over to Bella. He kneeled and rubbed her shoulder, looking into her eyes.

Alice knew what he was doing. He was sending calm thoughts into her head, comforting her. Bella nodded and pulled her knees up to her chest, taking deep breaths and keeping her gaze fixed on the grass right before Emmett's body. Through the valley's entrance, another figure joined them. Jasper snarled at his supposed enemy, but Alice held a hand out.

April stopped abruptly and looked around. First she noticed Jasper, and she glared for a moment. Next she looked at Bella, and simply looked like she couldn't care less. Finally, she caught sight of Emmett.

April's piercing cry of pain filled the valley, echoing off the rocks. It drowned out the crackling of the spreading fire. The girl was at Emmett's side in a moment, leaning over him and weeping.

"Emmett..." Alice caught some words. "_No._" Still sobbing, April lifted a shaking hand to take hold of Emmett's head. Alice looked away as she heard the crunch of his skin and when she looked back, his head was...reattached. But it was too late. Emmett was already a corpse. There was no way April could align his throat perfectly. It was too late.

Jasper was the only one in _complete _control. He gave out orders swiftly and efficiently, telling Alice to carry Bella and April to follow behind. Jasper himself carried Emmett, and the group made their way quickly out of the valley. Outside a car was waiting, engine on. The driver's window rolled down slowly, and a familiar head poked out. It was the man – '_Jason_' – who had been bitten by...Jasper. Alice looked up at him, but his face betrayed no emotion. April approached the car and mouthed quick words to him, before nodding to the others. Without any words spoken, everyone got inside. April sat up front in the passenger seat, Alice and Bella in the second row, and Jasper in the back row. It was a large car.

"Where to?" the driver said in a grim voice.

"Home." Jasper murmured. Jason turned completely around to look at Jasper. At first, he glared. But it softened as he thought of something else.

"I'm sorry." Jasper broke the silence after an hour of soundless driving. His words were obviously directed at Jason, even though they were at opposite sides of the vehicle.

"Don't be. Wasn't your fault." Jason muttered, keeping his eyes on the road.

"But it was." A cheerful, familiar voice popped out of nowhere. Everyone looked behind them, to see Bella, with a change of clothes, sitting in the spare seat next to Jasper. Only an instant later did Alice realise it was not Bella. It was Francesca.

Bella's POV

Bella barely took any notice as to what was going on in reality. In her mind, she kept seeing Emmett's face. His twisted look of pain in his final moment.

All _she _could feel was coldness. Her arm no longer hurt. Everything was so cold...

She just couldn't process the fact that Emmett was gone. Dead. Killed. And Bella couldn't keep the guilty thoughts out of her head. He died trying to save _her. _She had wanted to die earlier. In the valley. But Jasper had approached her, and convinced her not to somehow. Outside of her mind there was talking. A gasp. Bella ignored it, eyes shut. With a shock, Bella realised that Jasper had used his gift on her. It angered her that someone had messed with her mind. It was like he was controlling her. But she didn't fight it. She couldn't do anything. She was frozen.

Bella unwillingly opened her eyes, and let them wonder.

_Just my luck,_ she thought. In the pocket in front of her, she saw something sticking out. Taking a deep breath, she tried not to jolt around as the car she had somehow gotten in pulled to a stop. Bella's hand crept to the seat pocket and pulled out the little pocket-knife and held it tightly in her hand. It was closed. Suddenly, the scenery changed. She had been pulled out of the van at an immense speed, and was now sitting in the muddy grass with two people in front of her, blocking her view. Bella opened her hand and took out the little knife, opening it.

"I love you, Emmett." She breathed, before putting the knife in position.

"You died," she mouthed, tears spilling. "For me." With those words, Bella dug the knife into her chest.

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**Let's all be sad now... :'(**


	20. Dark Blood

**I have nothing to say... -_-**

**Before the Dawn - Evanescence**** (Have I used that one already?) **

**Chapter Twenty**

Alice's POV

As the first drop of blood spilled, chaos erupted from the five vampires.

Jasper had his hands full pulling Jason away, April sat as far as she could without leaving sight, Francesca had her hands on her hips and was smirking at the situation, and Alice was at Bella's side, not breathing and aiding to her injury.

As he was pulled farther into the forest, Jason's snarls died down. No one breathed.

Alice ripped off her little sweater and quickly pressed it to Bella's wound as a makeshift bandage. Turning slightly, her eyes found April a few metres away, back pressed up against a tree. Her eyes were wide and her mouth shut to avoid inhaling. As Alice took in a little breath, the sharp scent of blood hit her fully, and it took all she had not to kill Bella at that moment.

_Concentrate. _She thought.

"April, call an ambulance!" Alice called, before bringing her attention back to Bella. She had now started coughing violently, and as something stained her shirt, Alice realised that it was blood. Bella made horrible choking noises as she tried to breathe in, and blood dripped from her mouth and nose. She didn't have much time – the knife had hit her lung and she was choking on her own blood. Pretty soon her lung would fill with blood and she'd die.

"The ambulance won't make it in time to save her." Francesca's cold and quiet voice came from behind.

"Shut up. She'll be fine." Alice growled. She was denying every instinct inside of her by putting her back to Francesca, but she really couldn't be worrying about her right now.

"_No, _she won't. She'll choke in, what, five minutes? Probably less. And even if she _does _survive longer than that, she's losing a lot of blood." Francesca nodded to the red stain seeping through the thin fabric of Alice's sweater against Bella's chest.

"Shut _up! _There's nothing else we can do! I can't carry her to the hospital while making sure she doesn't _bleed _to death, and I don't trust _you _to help!" she spat.

"That's where you're being stupid – I can help. You know I have...vast 'gifts'. I can heal her." Francesca stopped and stared off at nothing in the distance, as if she was continuing inside her mind.

"No. After you kidnapped and tried to kill her, tried to kill me and April, and _actually _killed Emmett, I can_not _trust you!" Alice gently lifted Bella and brought her a few steps away – she couldn't go far because she had to make sure the sweater kept pressure on her bleeding stab wound.

"So you'd rather let her die in pain, than let me _save her_?" Francesca yelled, easily walking the two steps to Bella.

"_She's not going to die!_" Alice screamed. The other vampire just shook her head and crouched next to Bella.

"I swear, if you hurt her..." Alice left her sentence unfinished, letting Francesca imagine it herself. She just waved a hand dismissively and leaned closer to Bella. She placed a gentle, pale hand on Bella's wound and closed her eyes.

Francesca's POV

Stupid, stupid Alice.

Francesca couldn't _heal _Bella. Her gifts were dark and offensive, not angelic and healing!

She remembered when she had been banished from the Aeternas. The coven – or council – of seven vampires that secretly ruled the immortals. Like the 'Volturi' they would stamp out threats of exposure and keep order. However, they were older and stronger to the entire Volturi coven. Most vampires didn't know of the Aeternas, and that was how they wanted it. Their worst enemy were the Solfernus. Solfernus was a resistance against the Aeternas – they didn't like how they ruled, killing innocents and messing with humans and vampires alike. The only reason they were a threat was because their numbers were higher. Seven versus...hundreds? Luckily, the Aeternas had advantages. Being the first vampires, they had extraordinary gifts, such as those that Francesca possessed.

Francesca did not remember her original name. After so many years of fitting into different eras, she had changed it to her current name. And kept it so.

A lot of the Aeternas did this – Aiphos, one of the lower Aeternas, had renamed himself Phillip. It was not _too _modern, but the other leading vampires weren't happy about it. There had used to be eight Aeternas. Sofia, one of the youngest vampires in the coven, had angered Francesca. After a lapse of control, Sofia was dead and Francesca guilty. They banished her from their coven – and threatened to kill her if she was ever seen again. For one thousand years she had been in hiding, looking for _some _way to clear her name. And she had found it. Her ancestor, Isabella Swan, was identical to her. The Aeternas didn't need much proof, and so if Bella was a vampire and spotted by the council, she'd be dead in an instant. Everyone would think Francesca was dead, and she would finally be able to live in peace.

But first, Bella had to be a vampire.

Smirking, Francesca leaned down to bite her in the neck, sending a flow of venom into her system.

"_No!_" Edward Cullen's pained cry filled the forest.

Bella's POV

There was a sharp pinch at her throat.

It felt like a little scratch, but it seemed to become sore. After a while, it stung a bit, too. The whole time, Bella's eyes were shut, so she had no sight of the situation.

The pinch at her throat was getting warmer.

Hotter.

A little uncomfortable now...

Something seemed to be gnawing at Bella's throat..._fire! _She felt her whole neck burst into flames and screamed, swatting her hands about blindly. The fire got hotter and hotter, and Bella was _sure _that her neck was ash by now. She continued screaming in agony as the fire spread painfully slowly down through her body, circling around her heart.

"_No!_" A cry burst out of no where...familiarity rang in its tone.

"Edward?" came Alice's confused voice.

Edward? _Edward_? Bella gasped in a breath, but she felt a liquid rise in her throat. She couldn't breathe, and began coughing again. A copper taste filled her mouth, and she opened it in a painful sigh to let the blood pour out.

As the burning reached her heart, she stopped screaming, clamping her teeth shut. She would _not _give anyone the satisfaction of her pain.

Francesca's POV

"Given up stalking, huh Edward?" Francesca taunted, pulling away from Bella. She dodged Edward's leap easily, dancing out of the way.

"Not fast enough!" she laughed. "You should be grateful. I just saved her."

"No." Edward snarled. "You've damned her!" He lunged again, trying to grab Francesca as he went by. She took a quick step out of the way, smirking. Something clutched her shoulders from behind. Edward approached, and as he got within a metre she kicked out, using his chest as a springboard to flip over and get behind her attacker. He spun around too, bracing for attack.

"Jasper Hale." Francesca laughed. "Hello again. I thought you'd be busy with darling Jason." Now, two vampires were attacking at once. She could hold them off with ease without even using her 'powers'. Another joined in – Alice. She had left Bella with a cloth over her wound and bleeding at the neck, to help her brothers. Finally, Alic_ia_ toughened up and helped too. Francesca was surrounded.

Time for some magic tricks.

She focussed on a spot just outside their circle, and let herself transport to it through the air. Teleportation. The group of attacking vampires looked around confusedly, but when they saw her they continued their attack. Francesca continued teleporting through the trees, avoiding the vampires. Finally, Jasper grabbed her as she materialised.

"It's not nice to snatch..." Francesca murmured before she disappeared again. Finally, the game grew tedious and she teleported on the other side of the road as a large truck came by. Silently, she leapt and clung onto the side of it, where the Cullens couldn't see.

She made her escape.

Jasper's POV 

Once Francesca was gone, Jasper examined the area and was hit by the full scent of blood. He held his breath and hurried to help different people. He told April to find Jason and take him _far _away, told Alice to get back to Bella, and to Edward he gave a dangerous task.

"Edward, there's still time. It hasn't changed anything – the venom, I mean. You can still save her." Jasper said quickly.

"How?" Edward whispered.

"The venom – you can...remove it. If you drink her blood, you can suck it out before it takes hold." Edward looked horrified.  
"I...I can't!" he cried.

"Yes, you can." Jasper snapped, pointing at Bella. "Because if you don't, she turns into one of us." Reluctantly, Edward nodded slowly and made his way to Bella. If he couldn't stop, he'd kill her. If he didn't take enough, she'd turn into a vampire.

Charlie's POV

Charlie still hadn't heard from Bella, and it had been two days. He couldn't go to the police – he was the sheriff! He did, however, call all of her friends, call her mobile, and call the Cullens. He was currently on the phone with Carlisle Cullen.

"So Bella's not over there? I'm just worried, she's been gone for two days now..." Charlie mumbled.

"I'm afraid not – but Alice and Emmett have disappeared too. They won't pick up their calls..." Carlisle didn't hide his worry.

"What about...Jason? Oh sorry – I mean Jasper. Is he there? Or Rosy? Maybe Edward?" Charlie was desperate – and didn't bother to remember their names.

"Rosalie," Carlisle corrected. "And no, Jasper and Rosalie are on a trip to France for extra curriculum studies. Jasper was planning to go on his own, but I convinced Rose to go with him. And Charlie...Edward moved away a couple months ago." Charlie sighed in defeat.

"Alright. Thanks, Dr. Cullen."

"No problem."

Carlisle's POV

Carlisle ran a steady hand through his golden hair, eyes narrowed.

All of Carlisle's adopted children were _gone. _Jasper, because he was angry with himself for biting that man...

Rosalie and Edward, in sadness or anger that their loved one had left them.

Alice and Emmett...they were just _gone. _Along with Bella. Alice had probably gone after Jasper again, and maybe Bella and Emmett had left...but Carlisle really didn't know.

"I'm sure they'll come back in time," Esme murmured, soothingly rubbing his shoulder.

"I know but...it's unusual that they wouldn't tell us. Are we supposed to cover for them every time they want to leave?" Carlisle sighed and fell onto the sofa, sitting still. He started out of the huge glass wall and at a tree right outside. The window was open, and Carlisle expected Alice to tiptoe across that very branch and bounce inside, Jasper behind. He expected to hear the roaring fans from the television as Emmett cheered along with them. Edward and Rosalie's absence was normal. He felt as if he should smell Bella's blood – inside her body – and go along normally without _wanting _it.

Lastly, he wanted a normal day with Esme. _His _love. Enough with his children's problems. It was time to put _Carlisle _first.

Alice's POV

He did it. He _actually _did it.

Edward was able to stop drinking from Bella – and he managed to remove all the venom from her body. There wasn't a trace. Alice was filled with joy – but it didn't last. Her mind was brought back to the current situation; Bella had lost a lot of blood and was injured badly. She didn't have much time before...death.

Luck seemed to be rolling in quicker as a wailing sound of an ambulance approached. When it saw everyone, it stopped quickly and four people got out. One woman, the driver, and three men. Mostly doctors. Everything passed quickly – Bella was put on a gurney and loaded into the back, Alice was the only one that sat with her.

With Francesca gone, the rest of the vampires took the large family-sized car that Jason had brought. More luck – the keys were still in the ignition. Jasper nodded to Alice as they parted to different vehicles. Edward didn't go with them, but simply disappeared back into the forest. Emmett's body was still in the back of the car. As a vampire corpse, it didn't rot or change at all. It just didn't move. Bella was unconscious for the whole ride back to the hospital in Forks; she was put under by the doctors as they worked over her in the bumpy ambulance. Alice had to stay in the back, unable to see past the doctors.

She pulled out her cell phone and quickly dialled Carlisle.

"Alice! Thank God, I've been so worried -"

"Yeah, yeah – sorry. Um, I'm in an ambulance with Bella," in a quieter tone she whispered, "We were...captured by a vampire named Francesca. Carlisle -" her voice broke.

"What is it, Alice?"

"She killed Emmett. And Bella tried to _stab _herself, Carlisle. Then – Oh God, it was horrible. Francesca _bit _Bella. And then Edward came and...it was all so confusing..." Alice sobbed. She was talking quickly and unevenly, trying to squeeze a whole two days into a few sentences.

"Edward got the venom out of her. And Francesca just...disappeared. Bella's lost a lot of blood; we're on our way to the hospital."

"Shh, Alice, it's okay. She'll be fine. I'll be there – I'll talk to you later, okay?" Carlisle soothed.

"O-okay. I'll s-see you t-there." Alice stuttered.

Once they reached the hospital, Alice was pulled into a vision. It was fast and blurry, but she got something out of it.

Lucifer – also named the Redeemer. Alice had had a vision about him before. He could take away the thirst for human blood – and kill like Francesca could. But there was more in this vision.

"_Please," a man sobs. "Please help her." He holds in his arms a charred body – thin pink lines spread across it. It's a dead vampire._

_Lucifer stands above it, black hair gleaming in the weak light of the cave he stands in. _

"_Ah," he murmurs. "Giving life comes at a price. It is not easy. So I shall give you a price. Would you be willing to give your life, for hers?"_

"_Yes!" cried the man before Lucifer. _

"_Then we shall proceed." He places a hand on the body, and one on the vampire. He murmurs words in an unknown language, and a bright light spreads across the three figures. Lucifer sways slightly in his place. Finally, Lucifer steps back gasping. The man is still surrounded by golden light – and it gets brighter until he disappears with it. The previously dead body...is no longer burned. Her eyes are wide open and staring upwards._

"_Awaken. Libera mortis. Be free of death." _

Alice shuddered as she was pulled back into reality – the whole vision only lasted a second. Lucifer. The one who could save Emmett.

Alice had to find him.


	21. Epilogue

**Yep - the final chapter. :( If you call an Epilogue a chapter...**

**Anyway,******

I'm already writing the sequel - but I just need a title! It should be online fairly quickly, just look on my profile!

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**EPILOGUE**

Time flew by quickly over the next few months.

Francesca had disappeared completely, and no one dared pursue her. Jasper had returned to the Cullens, but had had to start from scratch on regaining his control over his thirst for blood. Edward had wandered off alone again, and Rosalie never returned. After being put into intensive care, Bella was fine, aside from being given anti-depressants and having Charlie monitor her behaviour for a month. She hadn't taken Emmett's death well – but really, who had?

Alice continued her research on Lucifer, keeping it a secret while devoting all her time to finding him. If he could truly bring back the dead, _and _cure bloodlust...both Emmett and Jasper could be saved.

Carlisle and Esme had not kept Emmett's death a secret; they publicly announced that he had 'choked' to death. His funeral passed quickly, there weren't many guests. Among those who _did _come were Rosalie and Edward. Rosalie sat at a pew in the back, sobbing. Edward lingered in the shadows by the doorway, watching. Afterwards, they left and didn't return.

The rest of the five months passed uneventfully – ending with Bella's graduation. Unlike her peers, she wasn't excited about it. She went through everyday grimly and quietly, it had become her new usual behaviour. Bella had seen councillors and had been given advice – but she never seemed to change. Jasper progressed quickly in his recovery to animal blood, and April fit in well as another member of the family. Jason had decided not to stay, and after suggestion from the Cullens had gone north to meet the Denali clan, close friends of theirs. Life had returned to an almost normal state.

Bella's POV

Bella awoke, screaming.

Her arms shot out into the darkness of her bedroom, but quickly swung behind her so that she could sit up. The door burst open and Charlie came running in, planning to wake her up. It had become a normal routine – the same dream every night. Or rather, a nightmare. Bella's breath came raggedly and quickly, mostly gasps. After a minute, her heart rate slowed and she breathed quietly. Charlie had left already, seeing her awake. Bella remembered the dream easily – but she knew she wouldn't for long.

In her dream, she stood in a dark forest, clinging to a figure desperately. She looked up into gleaming golden eyes worn by a pale, familiar face. His smiling features changed slowly, the upward curves of his perfect mouth drooping down, and his eyes widening. His whole face shifted into a mask of horror and pain, and he fell to the floor, writhing in pain. Bella screamed and called out his name, but felt that she couldn't move to help him. She watched in horror as the pale skin on his neck began to crumble...

Bella kept screaming and tried to get to him – to help him, but she was frozen in place. She couldn't even close her eyes to avoid watching as his head twisted gruesomely and...Detached itself from his body. Finally, Bella could move. She sprinted to his side and cried out. But his mouth was moving.

"I...died..." Emmett murmured. "Because...of..._you._"

Alice's POV

Alice sat in the front seat of her yellow Porsche, fiddling with her mobile phone.

She was parked on a little side street on the opposite side of town from the Cullens, all windows up and doors locked. The call she was about to make was private, and involved her research on Lucifer. She had told the Cullens that she was going shopping in Port Angeles – a lie of course, to make sure they didn't look for her. The roaring traffic from the main road to her right would drown out her quiet voice if a vampire would actually walk down there. But it was midday, and the sun was its highest point, beating heat down on the inhabitants of Forks, Washington State.

Alice flipped open her little cell phone and went to 'recent calls'. Not too far down on the list was the number she needed. Sighing, she hit 'dial' and pressed it to her ear.

"Alice?" Arina Retrova picked up on the second ring.

"Arina," Alice greeted her. "With the new details I gave you...did you find anything?" Arina paused before answering,

"I found a couple vamps that knew of the Aeternas, but that's it. Oh yeah, I got some more names. You were right, Lucifer _was _an Aeterna. Guess he was banished, too. Maybe he knew Francesca...or maybe..." Arina trailed off into silence.

"Arina, focus. Can you tell me the names?"  
"Huh? Oh yeah, yeah sure. There were originally _eight _Aeternas...now there are five, plus their guards. I got _seven _names and little details. Francesca, Lucifer – banished. Sofia, dead - Francesca killed her. Celeste, Phillip, Janine, and Lyreco, all still members. And the last one is their leader. I don't know _anything _about him except one, little, fact." Arina's tone quietened.

"And that is...?" Alice prompted.

"He was the first vampire."

Arina's POV

Alice hadn't seemed so surprised about the unknown-first-vampire.

In a league on the first vampires, there had to be _one _first. It was expected.

Arina was an old friend of Alice and out of boredom had agreed to go on this 'mission' for her. She was given all the research that Alice had discovered - which really wasn't much. However, she _had _found out that the Aeternas where in Italy.

The Aeternas, as Arina had gathered, were a council of (originally) eight vampires, who ruled the vampire world in secret. They were older and more powerful than the Volturi, but they were similar in many ways.

The Aeternas punished those who broke the rules – or rather, _rule. _But they did it secretly, barely anyone had ever heard of them. Being the first vampires, they had extraordinary powers that fascinated Arina. She only had one gift – but it was _very _useful in combat.

Arina could manipulate fire, she could _control _it. Arina could produce it as well as move it from other places. So far, she had only been able to project her power onto her palms, which meant she could only 'shoot' fire from her hands.

This power was also dangerous, however, because if her palms ever faced the wrong direction when she let her fire loose, she could kill herself.

Arina had been avoiding the Volturi for many years now – she wouldn't be a slave or guard to them. But they knew of her gift, and were determined to find her and 'convince' her to join their guard. Chelsea, an old friend, had joined the Volturi willingly. Her gift was the reason so many vampires were joining. She could mess with people's relationships – make them feel like they _should _join the Volturi. Arina had never seen Chelsea again. She knew though, that if Aro really wanted, he could send Demetri after her. He was a _very _skilled tracker, and it wouldn't be hard for him to find her. Luckily, he wasn't too desperate.

Yet.

Jasper's POV

Hours had passed since Alice had gone shopping.

It was now nine o'clock in the evening, and already dark. Jasper had told the Cullens that he was 'going out', but no other details. They didn't question him.

Now, Jasper was lingering in the shadows, waiting for the person he was to meet.

It had rained the previous night, and so the ground was still wet and covered with puddles strewn across the sidewalk.

Jasper was in Seattle – it had taken less than an hour to get there, and he was now waiting impatiently in a wide alley. It was dark and out of the way from the busy streets in an area that no one usually entered – perfect for a private meeting. The wet pavement glistened by the light of the dark glowing streetlamp. The windows from a neighbouring building were all out, some of them had curtains drawn and some had cracked or smashed glass.

It was an uninhabited area. A white blur flashed across the alley, but Jasper didn't dare move. He stayed locked in place, watching.

"Jasper?" a familiar voice chirped. Jasper let out a sigh and laughed, stepping out of the shadows.

"Hey, Veronica. What are you doing here?" he asked. Veronica appeared from the shadows, grinning. She swept her bouncy ash blonde hair behind her bare, tanned shoulders. Veronica wore only a light blue tank-top and cut off jeans. On her feet she wore grey sandals.

"Here for the meeting. Do you know how many people are coming?" she asked, glancing around.  
"I don't know – I hope not too many..." Jasper murmured. "Elliot caused quite a fuss last night."

"Yet again," Veronica muttered, "Lyreco really needs to sort that guy out." She sighed. Just then, another figure joined them. Steven walked casually into the alley, but he didn't look surprised that Veronica and Jasper were there.

"Hey guys." He greeted them quietly before sitting on a large cardboard box against the wall.

"Hi." Veronica murmured. Tim was one of the youngest vampires in the Hostium, and so everyone was careful not to annoy him. At least his attitude wasn't as bad as Elliot's.

Jasper examined his situation.

He was part of _Hostium, _a growing resistance against the Aeternas. No one in his family knew about him being in this group – it was too dangerous. The Aeternas killed anyone in the Hostium with no mercy whatsoever. Lyreco, a former member of the Aeternas, had grown tired of their cruel and unfair ways, and had started a secret resistance against the council. He still held a place, however, as a spy.

Jasper laughed bitterly at himself. Such secrets he kept from his family – they didn't even know of the Aeternas!

Finally, Lyreco himself entered the alleyway. In his hand he held a little opaque plastic bag, zipped shut. He nodded to the three other vampires.

"As the leaders of the Hostium, I have decided to only share this with you." He murmured. His voice was husky and quiet, but held a seriousness that kept everyone silent.

"After years of searching," he continued. "I found the key to overthrowing the Aeternas. I've discovered what kills immortals." This statement was followed by a gasp from Veronica. Lyreco always referred to vampires as 'immortals'. He found it more civilized.

"What?" asked Jasper in a low voice. Lyreco opened the small plastic bag and held it wide open for the others to see. Inside were a few daggers, as Jasper counted he saw four.

"Knives?" Tim laughed. Lyreco glared at him and he shut up instantly.

"These aren't knives. They are specially made daggers," he took a dagger out of the bag, carefully holding it by the hilt. The white blade glistened in the weak light.

"The blade is made of...Immortals." he smiled maliciously.

"Immortals? What do you mean?" Veronica spoke up.

"After Sofia died, her body still held...magyk. These are made of her very flesh. I've tested them myself – through the heart it kills an immortal in an instant." Veronica was silent, Tim was choking on a breath, and Jasper stood curiously staring at the dagger.

Lyreco's pained cry filled the air, and the other three vampires leapt up. The former Aeterna looked down at his chest, where the white point of a dagger stuck out from his body. Something pushed him from behind, and he fell forward, slumping on the ground.

"Lyreco!" Veronica cried. Timothy and Jasper snarled. A feminine figure was silhouetted against the light.

"Hm. Looks like they work." Francesca smirked, stepping into view.

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**Fini. The End!**

**The sequel is on it's way...**

**Any reviews on the story afterall? I'd love to hear what you guys thought of it!**


	22. REMINDER!

**This is not a chapter!**

**As you all know, New Love has ended.**

**And just in case you haven't realised/noticed, its sequel, _Eternal Shadows, _is out.**

**It can be found on my profile for you guys to read.**

**Thhhaaannkkks for reading!**

**Lauren**


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